


You Can Determine The Future Of Our World

by natigail



Series: You Can Determine The Future Of Our World universe [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Ending, Enemies to Friends, Eventual Happy Ending, F/M, Gen, Grillby's, Hurt/Comfort, Kidnapping, Magic, Misunderstandings, Monsters, Mute Frisk, News Media, Nightmares, Non-Graphic Violence, Nonbinary Frisk, Other, Papyrus Being Papyrus, Post-Undertale Pacifist Route, Prejudice Against Monsters (Undertale), Propaganda, Protection Of Civilians Against Monsters, Protective Sans, Reader Is Not Frisk, Reader-Insert, Sans Has Night Terrors, Sans Remembers Resets, Sharing a Bed, Shortcuts, Slow Burn, Souls, Stargazing, Threats of Violence, Undertale Skin, reader has a nickname
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-06
Updated: 2018-04-15
Packaged: 2018-12-11 23:23:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 37
Words: 163,978
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11724738
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/natigail/pseuds/natigail
Summary: * Set five years after Frisk and the monsters emerged from the Underground (Pacifist Route) *A war has broken out between monsters and humans. Human propaganda claims monsters are nothing more than evil manipulative being that murder as instinct and wish to take over as the reigning species of the world. Humans who tried to help monsters were labeled monster sympathizers and locked up.She had always been fascinated with monsters, even chosen to study them for her degree, but she could never dream of seeking out these supposedly vicious creatures. However, in a twist of fate her path crosses with a transport of the foremost monster sympathizer: Frisk, the former monster ambassador. Frisk is nothing like she expects and the teenager makes her begin to question everything she thought she knew about monsters.When Frisk’s family comes looking for them later, she is kidnapped. She expects torture or worse when the notorious Sans takes it upon himself to find out what she knows about their missing family member. But she begins to wonder if the humans leading the war might have got it wrong.





	1. A Fateful Meeting

You weren’t even supposed to be at work when it happened. It was a stroke of dumb luck that you were there at 10 PM when everyone else had left.

You had only been working at the research facility for a month as an intern while completing your degree in biology and a minor in monster history. You would be one of the first graduates from your minor course, since monsters had only really been known for five years when they emerged from the Underground.

But being in your early twenties and working all most exclusively with old men who all thought they knew better wasn’t a walk in the park. They tolerated you because the owner of the research facility had been the one who hired you but they didn’t trust the information you’d learnt from her monster history courses at university.

They trusted their own research first and foremost and shunned their colleague who’d been your professor. The reason you stayed late that fateful day was due to them dumping a whole load of tedious paperwork on your desk just before they left.

Well, you could have finished with the paper work by now if you weren’t busy doing research of your own. Monsters fascinated you to no degree and if it weren’t because they were evil and dangerous, you would have tried her hardest to go near them to study them up close. Still, your research into their souls, HP and magic kept you plenty busy even without personal experience. You were just interning as part of your degree and you would only be here for six months but you planned to take full advantage of your current security clearance, even if it wasn’t as high as your colleagues’.

You had your head buried in an old book you’d just managed track down last week. It was ancient and a piece of history in itself. It was labeled Book of Legends and handwritten. Originally, such works, of which allegedly there were more, had been thought to be fairytales. Now, it seemed more likely that it was actually based in facts as it became clear that monsters used to roam the earth alongside humans. You’d kept the book’s existence secret. You’d paid the seller, who was just a boy from your university who because of his wealthy family had access to a huge private library. You had paid for it out of own pocket so you felt no guilt in keeping it as yours, at least until you were done with it.

You thought you heard the distinct click of the front doors opening but that didn’t make any sense. You had a little office space at the ground floor, because the “real” scientists didn’t want you near their offices and confidential documents, and that was the only reason you could even hear the main doors opening. A quick check on your computer told you that the alarm had been disabled, which shouldn’t have been the case this late at night. It kicked in promptly at 7 PM and you’d have to have a key card to get in through the locked door. Still, if one of her colleagues were coming back for whatever reason, their entry shouldn’t have turned off the alarm entirely.

Slightly alarmed, you got up from your seat and made your way out of the little blocked off corner that acted as your office. You hadn’t even made it around the bend before you heard the shuffle. The scene before you was one that you’d never imagined you’d see.

Three big men dressed in black tactical gear held onto what seemed to be a teenager. The teenager struggled visibly against the two men who held them still, their mouth curling into a snarl but no sound came out. It made it all seem more eerie because the teenager looked distinctively like they were screaming.

You stood frozen as the three men and the teenager noticed you. In the blink of an eye, the one man not holding onto the clearly panicked teenager made his way to you and glared at you like he wanted to kill you.

“What is your business here? You’re interfering with a very important mission!”

“Oh… I-I…” you stumbled to find your words. “I work here?”

You held up your employee ID card as proof, finding your eyes drifting to the teenager in a baggy striped shirt. Shoulder length brown hair fell into their face, distinguishing their features but the look of terror had been evident from the moment you saw them. Only now, it looked more like something akin to hope was overtaking the fear.

You gulped, as the man in black shoved your ID back towards you and you had to fumble to grab it.

“We were told this space would be safe for a night layover. My team has travelled far and need just a couple of hours rest before proceeding. Seeing as you are here, you will act as our host.”

“Sorry?” you asked and stepped back and waved your arms around. “I’m just an intern. And what is going on with the horrified teenager. I don’t even know who you guys are!”

The man looked even more pissed off at you, if that was even possible. He scared you because his eyes looked dead and cynical. He looked like a man who’d long forgotten what it was like to be kind or have morals. You still weren’t sure that this was some elaborate ruse and they were kidnapping a teenager or something. It all seemed a bit sketchy.

A new ID card was thrust into your hands and as soon as you recognized the logo, you handed it back as if you’d been burnt. Every human knew that organization, Protection Of Civilians Against Monsters, called POCAM for short. It was a new branch of government, established four years ago after the humans had declared a war on monsters.

“Sorry,” you muttered, “let me help you out.”

It was almost as if you were back in the training camp. As every other eighteen year old, you’d been put through a summer of monster fighting camp. It was a tough place where you’d been trained briefly in what to do to defend yourself against monsters. Some people who did exceptionally well were recruited into government immediately. You’d done fairly well but declined the offer in favor of getting a degree instead. Still, you had to take a test every year to prove that you kept in fighting shape.

“We have a couple of bedrooms at the third floor, north side, where you can have a rest. The scientists who work here occasionally use them if they can’t leave their work overnight.”

“Do you have any holding cells?”

You frowned at that and cast a worried glance at the teenager.

“Who is he? Or she?” you asked and gestured to the terrified teenager held up only by the tight grip on either of their arms. Their knees curved in under them.

“That is classified, miss. We’re coming from a successful rescue mission but the kid is bit confused. They have been held captive for a long time. Monsters mess with your mind and the kid is considered a threat until debriefed and assimilated.”

“We don’t have holding cells, no,” you said sternly because this seemed inhumane. “We don’t actually have to keep monsters here, you know. Besides they are shaking and more in need of a blanket and a cup of tea than a holding cell.”

And that was how you somehow managed to get yourself into this mess. If you’d just been dismissive and told them about the actual room in the laboratory that could easily act as a holding cell, then you might have gotten out of this before becoming too involved.

The men in black agreed to bring the teenager to the kitchen as per your request, even if you hadn’t made it on purpose. You fetched the old hoodie you hid in your desk drawer for when you needed a little extra comfort and then went about making tea as if this wasn’t the most bizarre thing that had ever happened to you. Two of the guards went off to rest for a couple of hours in the rooms you’d told them about and the third stood guard outside of the kitchen.

The teenager looked absolutely terrified of the man.

“Would you mind if I closed the door?” you asked man in black #3. They’d refused to give your names because of confidentiality so you had to make do. “They are terrified of you,” you added in a whisper hoping the teenager wouldn’t be able to overhear.

With a grunt and a huff, the man closed the door and the room felt eerily quiet. They were staring at their hands twisting them in what could only be a painful manner. They’d accepted the hoodie but it just hang loosely over their shoulders.

You’d heard all the horrible rumors of how monsters killed without mercy and took human hostages to make them into slaves. The thought made you audibly and visibly shudder and that made their head snap up. They were looking at you with such an intense gaze that you felt like they were staying right through you.

You almost spilled the tea you had been pouring into the mug. There were plenty of mugs in there, all stamped with the research facility’s logo but you bypassed all of those and reached for your private mug. You dumped the teabag in the Eeyore mug and put it down in the table in front of them. Their eyes were following your every movement almost as calculating how you’d attack.

Fuck the monsters really did a number on this kid.

“Are you okay?” you asked as they slowly closed their small hands around mug.

They look back at you with a contemplative look and then sat down the mug with a clink. Suddenly, their hands were moving in front of them, rapidly but in purposeful strokes.

It took you a moment to realize that they were signing to you. You tried recall the limited American Sign Language that you’d been able to understand. You had a classmate who was deaf mute and you’d been learning to talk to her but then the accident had happened and keeping up with friends had been the last thing on your mind.

Still some of it retained though, even if the teenager’s hands were moving too fast for it to make sense to you.

“Slow down, kid,” you asked and they let their hands drop and hopelessness came back to their face. You weren’t sure if they were good at lip reading or not deaf.

You did the salute that you remembered to be hello. Their eyes followed you carefully. You tapped your chest, indicating yourself, and they hit two fingers against each other and then with much concentration recalled the individual letters that made up your name.

Slowly, the teenager smiled at you and then repeated the “hello”, “my” and “name” part and then moved on to show you letters. You struggled a bit, having only really remembered the letters that made up your own name. They moved their hands slowly though and gave you time to work out each letter.

F

R

I

S

K

The realization hit you like a truck. Of course, it was Frisk. How had you not put two and two together before? They were the perfect age, their features still quite androgynous and they were unable to speak. It fit perfectly with the former non-binary mute monster ambassador.

The kid didn’t need an introduction. Their face had been everywhere when monsters first emerged from the Underground. They had been the one who’d brought monsters up from the prison that humans had sealed them in, a long time ago.

However, they were a far cry from the smiling kid you remembered seeing all over the television screen five years ago but being held captive by monsters for years could probably do that to a kid.

You cursed under your breath. They had been missing for years. It was theorized that they were either a monster sympathizer or a victim to monster enslaving humans. Either way, it made sense that they would be escorted with such high security.

Frisk started signing again, keeping the pace slow, even as their eyes slowed urgency. However, you didn’t know sign language well enough for this. You only caught onto one of the signs.

“Family?” you asked, to which they nodded frantically and then kept signing.

“Sorry, kid,” you muttered. “I don’t know sign language that well, I’m afraid.”

They looked at you pleadingly. If only they could write it down, they seemed to be able to understand your speech just fine. If the guards hadn’t confiscated your phone you could have used that.

But you did have a little whiteboard, the size of a tablet, sitting in your office space. Maybe that could work.

“I’ll be back in a moment,” you told them. “I promise.”

You slipped out the door, which the guard wasn’t happy about but when you began to describe the effects of keeping a woman on her period from bathroom breaks, he caved pretty easily.

You fetched the white board and a marker and went to the bathroom where you stuffed it down front of your shirt. Bless that you’d decided to wear a loose top today, which would conceal it. The whole thing made you feel on edge. Why were you smuggling a white board for a potential monster sympathizer?

“What am I doing?” you whispered out loud and leaned over the sink, gripping the edges tightly as you looked up at your reflection. The bag under your eyes looked more prominent in the harsh florescent lighting. You looked so young in that moment, make-up long ago rubbed from your eyes after a long day.

You should just go home. Excuse yourself with a migraine of something. The guards would let you leave. You shouldn’t go back to talk to Frisk but you were so curious and Frisk’s brown eyes haunted you already.

You couldn’t just leave them. They had to be fifteen or sixteen. Definitely still a minor even in a world where that wasn’t the biggest concern. Everything was plagued by the war and threats of monsters but you’d seen how the men had yanked at poor Frisk. Your heart couldn’t take that, no matter what kind of person Frisk was.

Thankfully, you made it back into the kitchen without the guard giving you a second glance. You shut the door behind you and let out a breath you didn’t know that you’d been holding.

Frisk’s eyes practically twinkled when you pulled out the white board and marker.

“Not a sound,” you whispered and motioned towards the door.

Frisk gave you a dumb look and you realized your mistake.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to…”

Frisk was already scribbling and held up to show you.

_It’s okay._

More scribbling.

_Who are you? You with them?_

“I work here,” you replied. “Just started recently. I’m not… I’m not a monster sympathizer if that’s what you’re asking? Those men saved you, right?” you asked in a hushed voice.

Frisk’s alarmed expression let you know that they didn’t agree at all, even before they flipped the board over.

 _No. They took me from my family._ They wiped it clean again. _Do you know where Toriel is?_

The name rang a bell, obviously. It was the Queen of Monsters. Had Frisk been a personal slave of hers or something? Nobody really knew how long Frisk had been Underground. They’d been an orphan according to the news stories and never reported missing.

“I don’t know, kid. I’m sorry,” you answered.

 _Can you get me back to her?_ They wrote.

“I can’t, Frisk. You must understand you’re under the protection of the Ministry of Defense. Those men are from a special tactical unit but they are tasked with protecting people, from monsters. I know you spent a lot of time with them and that things looked promising when you helped them emerge but you know….”

Frisk was writing like possessed. Harsh angry strokes stared back at you when they flipped the board and efficiently cut you off.

_THEY ARE MY FAMILY. MONSTERS ARE **NOT** EVIL. HUMANS ARE EVIL. MEN KIDNAPPED ME._

That unfortunately confirmed the initial suspicion that you’d had about Frisk being here against their will. But they were still so young and impressionable and maybe the monsters had worked some kind of magic on them that made someone fiercely loyal.

The thought turned your stomach. If monster were able to mind control you like that did they commandeer a fleet of humans happy to be slaves?

“Frisk, I don’t… I’ve been following the war very closely. I’ve studied it as part of my degree. I’ve dug into the history we have here above ground and it looks pretty bad. The King Asgore admitted to harvesting the souls of kids that fell into the underground. Monsters have committed theft and murder, even since they surfaced.”

Frisk was glaring at you with pure determination as they wrote again, clearly looking to challenge your belief. You wanted to pretend like you couldn’t be swayed. You were stubborn by nature but you’d always made it a virtue to take the time to look at things from multiple perspectives. It was only fair but it was difficult when it came to monsters, as they weren’t exactly forthcoming with information.

_Humans tricked monsters. Locked them underground. Things… happened there. They’re still not evil._

“But, Frisk…” you started to argue but they held up a finger to make you pause as they wrote again.

_Trust me. I know them. They’re my family and friends. You misunderstand them because they’re different._

You took a moment to take in the words; the black words a stark contrast to the white background. It was something that had happened too often in history. People got blinded and forgot to see the whole picture.

But the research you had access to all pointed towards the monsters as the culprits but then were the sources completely believable if they only came form the human side of history? After all, it was the victors who got to tell the story and it wasn’t always the completely truth. Frisk looked like someone who was wise beyond their years, like they’d lived far longer than sixteen years and seen more than most people did in a lifetime.

“Frisk, what about all the humans taken and killed by monsters? Every time there’s been a fight, human casualties are sky-high.”

Frisk frowned at that and squirmed in their seat.

_Monsters aren’t perfect. They’re like people. If you attack them, they will fight back. Not their fault._

Your head was practically swimming by now. When you went to work this morning, you’d looked forward to a quiet day cataloguing all the interesting aspects from the book you found and doing the paperwork from the researchers, which was your actual job.

Frisk did the sign for family again, and again, and again.

You knew objectively you shouldn’t trust what Frisk was telling you. They were far too involved in this to be objective. They had been in the company of monsters for years, maybe being brainwashed. But their eyes looked clear, sentient and determined.

_I can see your kindness and your integrity. I know you want to help. Please help us._

You only finished reading the whiteboard as the door snapped open and the guard walked in. He seemed fairly calm until he saw the white board Frisk was desperately trying to conceal while wiping the sleeve of the hoodie over it.

“What is going on here?” man in black #3 demanded to know, hauling Frisk up by their collar as the white board clanged against the floor, wiped completely clean.

“Nothing!” you exclaimed, your voice pitched way to high to be believable.

Frisk squirmed against the hold of the guard.

“But them down! They’re a minor and they have rights, you can’t treat them like this,” you said.

“The subject is not allowed to communicate with anyone. You’d think it would be easy with a stupid mute but apparently not.”

“They have rights! Your mission or whatever doesn’t mean you can violate their human rights?”

“Human rights?” the man laughed, tightening his grip on Frisk. “That’s reserved for actual humans with values and morals. Not little monster sympathizers like him.”

Frisk froze at the insult and being misgendered. You hated this guy more by the second. You normally liked to plan out your actions before diving in headfirst but you had limited time. You’d been evaluating how you could put yourself between Frisk and the guard from the moment he picked them up.

“What is going on?” said man in black #1 who came sprinting through the doorway.

“This little girl,” the #3 said and pointed at you, “has been conversing with the subject using a whiteboard.”

“What do you have to say for yourself?” #1 demanded and stared down at you from his towering height.

“I made them feel comfortable. No one told me that I couldn’t talk to them,” you argued.

This made #1 scowl at #3, who suddenly looked frightened.

“Go wake our colleague. We’re leaving immediately. This facility has been compromised,” the man in charge said and shoved the other on his way, finally breaking his grip on Frisk’s collar.

You ran to help them stand from where they collapsed on the floor but #1 blocked you off with his muscly arms as #3 ducked out the door.

“You will stand trial for this if you don’t step back immediately. I don’t think you want to know the punishment for helping monster sympathizers. Stay out of it.”

You glared at the tall man and tried, and probably failed, to look intimidating. However, his words did frighten you. You’d lose everything if you were accused of fraternization with monsters, even second degree. You’d be fired and you’d never be able to finish your degree and likely would have a hell of ever getting a job anywhere.

Frisk had gotten to their feet on their own and looked your way. You expected to see rage or at the very least frustration but Frisk’s expression were surprisingly neutral. And then their hands moved, quickly throwing three signs before the guard caught hold of them in a death grip that would probably bruise.

You caught the signs though and what’s more you recognized them. Help my family, they’d said. For them, it seemed as simple as that.

#2 and #3 appeared in the doorway moving to stand on either side of Frisk like they’d done when the brought them in around an hour ago. Frisk looked oddly resigned at the whole thing but they were still looking you in that particular way, as if they were looking right through you.

You knew it might get you into trouble but you did the sign for goodbye anyway. Frisk smiled before they were yanked back out of the kitchen and out of your life, for now. Neither of you knew what this fateful meeting would lead to.

“You’ll face consequences for this,” #1 barked out as they left and honestly, he had no clue how right he was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have never written an Undertale fic before but when I watched Dan and Phil play through the whole game, I instantly felt drawn to Sans' character which eventually got me reading Undertale stories on here. I've written so many stories in first or third person, so I thought it would be interesting to explore second person writing and the reader trope, even though I haven't done that before either. 
> 
> This story will be quite long but it will be updated weekly and I already have a loads of chapters pre-written. If you were missing the monsters, don't worry, they'll be here next chapter. Do let me know your thoughts on this chapter, if you'd be so kind?


	2. A Monster Attack

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She thought she would at least be fired for pissing off the POCAM guards escorting Frisk. At worst, she expected to be charged with obstruction of justice. She forgot about the third option though: very angry monsters coming to look for their token human and taking her hostage.

You weren’t entirely sure how you’d made it home the night before but it must have been midnight before your head finally rested on the pillow. Your mind seemed to spin too fast for its own good. Eventually, your body gave into the exhaustion but it still felt like you hadn’t slept at all when your alarm clock beeped angrily at 7 AM.

Groaning, you turned it off and sunk back into the warm covers. It would be so easy to call in sick and avoid the hell that probably awaited you at work after what happened last night.

You weren’t particularly keen to learn if you’d simply be fired or would prosecuted for your actions as well. Still, you knew that avoiding it would only make things worse. That might prompt people to show up at your actual home and you didn’t want that. You’d also like to pack your things and retrieve the Book of Legends that you’d hid in the ladies’ room, as you wouldn’t put it past your colleagues to snoop at your desk.

It was raining when you eventually stepped outside, because of course it would. The journey to work was fairly short but today it felt all too long. You half expected your ID card to be rejected but it just beeped like it always did and the doors unlocked.

You started by finishing up the paperwork that you’d forgotten about during the whole thing last night.

“You’re still not done with that, intern?” asked one of the asshole researchers as he saw you scramble to tidy the papers scattered over your desk.

Well, if I hadn’t been interrupted and then volunteered to look after the former monster ambassador it might have been a different story. You felt tempted to tell him that but you held you tongue and just nodded, which made him look smug.

Finishing up the work only took half an hour and then you went about saving all your research and sending it back to your private account. You weren’t supposed to do that but you would undoubtedly get fired when it came to light what had happened with Frisk and the men from POCAM.

You had only been at work for about an hour when you heard the screams coming from the reception. You scrambled out from your little closed off corner, half expecting to see the three men in black and how their firearms probably startled the poor receptionist.

However, screaming from several other people started and you froze as you took in the scene before you. Monsters were in the lobby, looking dangerous and furious.

Your heart leapt into your throat and the mantra drilled into you from monster camp resounded inside of your head without permission.

**Kill the monsters. Monsters are weak to human determination. Strike where it hurts and keep fighting. Don’t surrender. It will only lead to a slow and painful death. Do not hide but stand up and fight.**

You saw several people blatantly forgetting the mantra you knew they’ve all heard as well. Every adult human had to go through the tests. Some were fleeing for their life but several others are charging at the monsters.

You noticed the froglike monsters first, simply because there are so many of them. You recognized them immediately. Froggits, which are registered as a fairly weak monster but they still seemed to strike fear in everybody.

It could also be either of the two dynamic duos; Dogamy and Dogressa and a pair of Royal Guards, all which looked intimidating and ready to hurt someone.

This meant trouble. You wanted to do something. You should be getting ready to fight them, like you’ve been trained to. You were an adept fighter and you could have been recruited if you hadn’t made a case against it. However, Frisk’s words were still fresh in your mind, even if the sights before your eyes made you question them anew.

There was more screaming and only now you distinguished the high pitched roaring from the terrified humans. It was a fish monster screaming and you immediately recognized the terrifying Undyne, the former leader of the Royal Guard, who had tasked with capturing the humans who fell into the Underground.

You had no clue why she’s screaming like that but all too sudden it stopped and you found yourself physically frozen in place, not that you were doing much moving before. Still, it terrified you that your limbs refused to move and you struggled against the invisible hold. Your body had a very light blue tint to it and you saw others affected by the same thing.

“we’re looking for frisk,” said an even voice near the front entrance. “they’ve been through here and we need to find them.”

Several insults were thrown the monster’s way but that only made him chuckle. You couldn’t see who the voice belonged to but the gravelly voice sounded masculine. You were too far away to be able to tell.

“that’s how you want to play it?” the voice continued. “fine. have it your way. we’ll have our fun then.”

The voice sounded sinister and terrifying, sending chills down your spine more than Undyne’s roaring, which started up again promptly as you found yourself able to move. You scrambled away from the fight and many humans that charged towards the monsters waving their service guns. On account of you being an intern, you actually didn’t have one but it didn’t seem to make much difference.

None of the guns would fire and people looked horrified as they realized. It was probably some trick of magic. You pulled back, decided the best plan was to flee, no matter what your brief but intense training told you.

You felt unexplainably let down though. After your encounter with Frisk last night, you’d been considering giving the monsters a second chance but this was who they really were… coldblooded murderers.

The sounds were enough to confirm that people were dying. You shuddered, feeling cold to the bone as you made your way towards the emergency exits. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw some of your colleagues fall to the floor, looking completely lifeless.

Just your luck the roar of Undyne closed in on you before the terrifying fish monster stood before you. She was tall and looked strong and fierce but something felt off. You’d seen photos of her before and knew about the eye patch but instead dark shades covered her eyes.

She roared at you again.

“Where do you think you’re doing, punk? We have a few questions first,” she said and roared again as you tried to make a dodge past her.

It might only be because you’d covered it in a recent biology test but you suddenly realized she was using echolocation, or bio sonar, to locate your whereabouts? Why would she need that? Had she gone completely blind? And usually human ears couldn’t pick up echolocation because of the frequency. It made no sense.

“Just answer a few questions and we won’t hurt you,” the menacing fish monster cooed and you didn’t believe it for one second. She looked like she wanted nothing more than to rip your throat out.

You decided to keep as quiet as possible as not to alert her ears of your whereabouts as you slowly began to sidestep around her.

“Where’s Frisk?” she snarled, sounding more like a protective sister than a coldblooded killer for a brief moment.

You kept edging around her; you were almost past her, if only a little further…

Undyne roared again and you saw rage flood her face as she realized that you’d moved. Suddenly, she was roaring directly at you, and you felt your body being slammed down into the hard ground beneath you while cold slimy fingers closed around your throat.

It was almost a blessing to have the ringing in your ears because it momentarily drowned out the sound of death around you. It sounded like humans were being torn apart in reception you’d run away from.

“How dare you try and sneak past me?” Undyne snarled, face twisting into unmistakable blood thirst.

This was it. You were going to die at the hand at a monster, just like everybody had always told you.

“undyne,” called the even voice before and you chanced a look in that direction.

Had it been anyone else, you’d have been happy for the interruption that prolonged your life by a few seconds but not with this guy. You should have seen that coming. The stocky and short skeleton, wearing the same blue hoodie he was always photographed in, made his way towards you and Undyne.

Sans was supposedly one of the strongest monsters in existence if rumors were to be believed. He had a permanent grin on his skull and his eye sockets were completely black as he stared down at you.

“What is it, Sans? This little punk figured out…” Undyne started to say but then cut herself off. “Did you find anything out? Has anyone seen Frisk?”

Sans shook his head. “no. the royal guards are applying their methods of extracting information as we speak,” he said and appropriately a toe-curling scream of pain.

He looked so sinister with his fixed grin and it scared you almost as much as the fish monster hovering over you with her fingers curled around your throat.

“did you ask that one yet?” Sans asked and stepped closer to the two of you. He was looking you too intensely and you felt naked and vulnerable under his graze. “interesting,” he muttered to himself.

“I doubt this punk knows anything. She took of running the moment she sensed trouble.”

“smart enough to figure you out though,” Sans said and if you didn’t know any better you’d say that he was playfully teasing Undyne, as if they were friends just hanging out and they weren’t about to kill you.

“Careful or I’ll snap every bone in your body, bone boy,” Undyne threatened.

Sans simply gave her a blank stare and circled the two of them, still inspecting you. A shadow fell on Sans’ face and you knew a decision would have been made.

You would never have been able to predict the words out of his mouth next.

“do you surrender?”

“What?” you squeaked as your airway still was constricted.

Undyne huffed in annoyance and might have rolled her eyes, if she had any. Her grip on your throat lessened a bit though.

“Always so soft, Sansy,” she commented.

Sans just made his grin even wider as if that was even possible. “you know the procedure. what do you say, human?”

Every single fiber of your being told you to tell him to fuck the hell off. You weren’t going to submit to become the chew toy of some monster. You repeated the mantra internally. The don’t surrender part burned vividly inside of you.

“I won’t go with you. You’re just as horrible as I’ve always been told. You come in here and tear us apart just for kicks,” you said because even if they were here looking for Frisk, nowhere was it written that the way to do it was to tear through the people standing in the way.

“Every human gets the chance to surrender. We never attack first,” Undyne said and tightened the grip on your throat. “Most are just too stupid and proud to admit defeat.”

“There’s other ways! Murder and torture can’t be your plan A,” you snarled, furious now because you wanted to live in a world where this couldn’t happen.

You wanted the fantasy world you’d thought would have been possible when monsters first emerged from the ground. You’d been moved by Frisk’s first speech as monster ambassador but everything changed with the attack during a meeting between monster representatives and government officials. Monsters had made the first move then, even if it was the humans who officially declared war. That’s what you’d always been told.

“I can’t believe they almost made me reconsider your intentions,” you said, struggling to breathe against the pressure but with a jolt Undyne drew her hand away. You were gasping for breath but you saw the looks they exchanged, you weren’t sure how that was possible when one of them was apparently blind but that’s what it looked like.

“ _they_ almost made you reconsider _our_ intentions? ” Sans said your words back to you and you stilled completely.

Fuck, you hadn’t meant to say that but it was difficult to think clearly when you could hardly breathe.

“She met Frisk,” Undyne said and you flinched, scrambling to your feet away from the two monsters that both eyed you too curiously. “They were here then.”

You wanted to make a run for it but your limbs felt heavy and looking down you noticed the faint blue glow from before. Sans’ left eye was glowing vividly blue and he looked like he was genuinely smiling for the first time.

“well, this is interesting news. you’re coming with us,” he said with a finality that scared you.

They’d take you to torture you and then you’d probably be turned into a slave. You fought the shudder, not wanting them to know how much this terrified you. You wanted to deny having been talking about Frisk but somehow they’d just known immediately. You sensed there was not talking them out of it now.

One of the Royal Guards walked over to the three of you.

“No other humans knew anything. They were all very hateful though. They fought bravely.”

You snickered at that comment and you couldn’t hide that your body was physically shaking. What had you gotten yourself into? You should really just have stayed home today. Getting fired and having officers’ show up at your door to arrest you seemed like a walk in the park next to being taken hostage by actual monsters.

“A few surrendered,” the Royal Guard continued. “We have loaded them up in the van. Should I take this one as well?”

“no,” Sans said way too quickly. “this one is sitting with us.”

“Like hell I am,” you protested and tore against the invisible restraints. It hurt like hell and your muscles were screaming. You struggled for a few minutes until your vision was invaded by black dots.

The exhaustion came back in full force, reminding you of your troubled sleep. Adrenalin had kept you alert since the monsters walked through the door but as your body was being dragged forward without you moving your feet, you just felt tired and worn out.

You tried to struggle as they shoved you into the car but your hands and legs still wouldn’t move. Sans leaned into fasten your seatbelt and he got way too close for your liking.

You closed your eyes, thinking any moment you might feel his hands wander, another rumor about monsters were that they fetishized humans, but he just grinned at you with his one-flashing eye and moved away as soon as it clicked into place.

You were sitting directly behind the passenger seat in normal car and Undyne got in to sit in front of you. She turned around and flashed her sharp teeth at you, undoubtedly because she felt like you needed another scare upon this horrible day.

One of the Royal Guards got into the driver’s seat and Sans took the place directly behind the driver. Thankfully that left a nice little buffer between yourself and Sans.

You still couldn’t move your body but slowly you found the smooth rhythmic rocking of the car lull you to sleep. You’d always been the kid that would be out instantly whenever you got into a car. It was how your parents’ had lulled you to sleep when you’d been a baby. It was the reason you’d survived when…

You shook your head, willing away the thoughts of your parents. It didn’t matter anymore. They had died over ten years ago and you’d be likely to join them soon.

Just to indulge in whatever brief escape sleep could offer, you let your eyes fall shut.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Excuse me while I'm over here being giddy that I can write Sans' dialogue in actual comic sans. It took a little while to figure out how to do it because I'm rubbish with HTML but hopefully it works for everybody now? And we got to see Undyne and Sans! In the five years that passed since the monsters emerged from the Underground they've been through some shit, hence Undyne's current condition. Along the way you'll find out what happened to the other monsters as well.
> 
> The reader character mask her fear with anger but there's so much she doesn't understand yet. All in good time. I hope you liked it. Let me know if you'd be so kind?


	3. An Unwilling Prisoner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arriving at the monsters' headquarters, she prepared herself for the worst. She'd been kidnapped and surely enslavement and torture for information would be next. However, the monsters, while still terrifying to her, didn't act like she expected at all.

“human, open your eyes,” called a voice, far too gentle as it arose you from your sleep. You were baffled for a moment, as you couldn’t remember going to sleep at all. As your blurred vision focused, you found yourself staring into the empty eye sockets of a monster.

You screamed trying to pull back only to be caught on something. Panicked, you pulled on the restraint to realize it was just your seatbelt and it unclicked without further struggle.

“And you complain when I scream. At least mine sound like the roar of a fierce animal and not a terrified little girl,” Undyne complained, glancing into the car.

You fumbled out of the car and tried to take off in a sprint. The opportune word being tried because your feet stayed rooted on the ground and the more you pushed, the harder it became to breathe. You didn’t need to look down to see the vague blue glow surrounding your body to know Sans was to blame.

Welcoming anger to push away the fear, you glared in the skeleton’s direction.

“sorry, pal, my bones are immune to the attack of the evil glare,” Sans said and chuckled and you felt your body being pulled towards him. This felt horrible and constricting and like you couldn’t get out, like you couldn’t breathe, like no one would find you, like you’d die here, trapped next to their bodies… You squeezed your eyes painfully closed.

Suddenly, the hold of you let go and your knees buckled and you’d have landed on the floor, if not for a sturdy hand grapping your arm and shoulder. You registered the tight grip on your arm, as the dead weight of your body was dragging you towards the ground. Oddly, the first thought that entered your mind that you’d expected Sans’ bones to be colder. Like the human and animal bone you’d touched as part of your biology studies. But no, his skeleton hands were warm and seemed to hum as they closed around your upper arm and rested on your shoulder.

“Let me go!” you screamed, wrestling against the tight hold that you knew you wouldn’t be able to get out of. He was simply too strong and his bony fingers were making indents in your soft flesh and they would inevitably leave bruises but right now you didn’t care.

“calm down,” Sans actually growled when he grew tired of your struggling and when you didn’t stop squirming he froze you in place, which made the panic start anew but then his hold, both the physical and the magical, let up and he stepped back.

Undyne was looking between the two of you with an amused expression on her face.

“walk with me,” Sans asked, politeness poured into his voice but the edge was still chipped and cold and you knew it wasn’t an offer you could refuse.

Still, it was better to walk with your own two feet as opposed to be dragged by force. You took a moment to survey your surroundings. You had no idea how long you’d travelled on account of being asleep for some of the journey. This place looked vastly different from your city though. However, you knew exactly where you were as you turned around.

Mount Ebott had become famous and a tourist attraction when the monsters first emerged. Since the declare of war, it had been the headquarters for the monsters, who liked to remain close to their previous home and the treasures they clearly wanted humans nowhere near. Only a few humans had been allowed in the Underground and every single one of them had been handpicked and carefully approved to go on the first explorative mission down there. That was over four years ago now. No human had been down there voluntary that is… it was suspected that monsters threw their human slaves down there.

You felt both Sans and Undyne’s eyes on you and slowly forced your feet to move towards them. You could attempt to make a run for it again but unfortunately Sans’ weird gravity powers put an end to that dream. Undyne looked like she was daring you to try, her face oddly expressive even hid behind large blacked out glasses. She probably wanted to drive a spear through you.

The two monsters stood still until you were between them and then they started moving. You didn’t know what you’d been expecting but walking into a small modern hotel hadn’t been it. You all got into the elevator, Sans and Undyne still both glaring at you.

This was not what you’d expected. The hotel was fairly small only seven stories and you got out on the fourth floor. They directed you forward but neither made any attempt to touch you. Undyne unlocked the door to one of the many rooms with a key card and gave you a shove to make you go inside.

You’d expected more of a damp dungeon than a minimalistic hotel room, even if it was rather small. There was a bed in the corner, a bare desk with a little stool and that was it. The room was an odd beige color but everything looked clean and habitable.

“You’re keeping me here?” you asked with a frown.

“only ‘til you tell us where frisk is. after that you’re free to go,” Sans said and leaned against the doorframe casually.

Right, like that had any truth to it. Monsters were evil and master manipulators. They were probably just trying to lull you into a false sense of security. Absentminded, you rubbed the sore spot on your arms. Bruises were beginning to come in ever so slightly. They wouldn’t flush deep purple but they’d probably get a vague blue and yellow tint.

Sans’ eyes narrowed in on your movement. How eye socket could look like they were squinting you had no idea but it looked properly freaky, especially with the grin.

“Let’s go,” Undyne said, grabbing hold of Sans and pulling him by the arm. It gave you a moment to admire her muscly arms. That fish monster seemed made of pure muscle and to remember that she’d had her hands around your neck made you shiver.

The door slammed in your face and you let yourself fall down into the bed. This was surreal. You almost wanted to believe that everything would snap back to normal if you just closed your eyes for long enough.

You’d never have stayed late and met Frisk. You’d never have been at work when the monsters came and if you had, then you’d never have opened your big fat mouth and caught the interest of two of the most notoriously dangerous monsters on the planet.

Sleep didn’t come, as was to be expected. You weren’t sure how long you’d been passed out in the car but it seemed to have given you some energy. Or maybe it was the fact that you didn’t want to sleep and be vulnerable here.

Dogressa came with dinner for you, set it down on the table without so much as a second glance in your direction. She left immediately after and you heard the lock click shut. You poked at the food for a bit but you couldn’t make yourself eat it.

It looked safe enough, potatoes and a slice of beef but you didn’t have any appetite. Besides, when you’d stuck your tongue out to carefully taste a potato, it had left an odd tingling sensation where you’d made contact. They might have poisoned it.

When the door opened again an hour later, you’d expected to see Dogamy or Dogressa or maybe even Sans because of the way he’d been so keenly observing you. You’d not expected to see Undyne and instantly, you moved as far away from her as possible.

“Why haven’t you eaten, dork? Is our food not good enough for you delicate palate?” she snared as she strode into the room oozing confidence.

You didn’t want to admit that they thought they might have poisoned it. Undyne would surely know if that was the case, so either she was playing it up to get you to eat the poison or she was mad that you’d figured it out.

Undyne walked over to the food, took in a sniff and her eyes widened in surprise. Maybe she hadn’t known. She mumbled something under her breath and shook her head as if the whole thing made her mad and confused.

“You should really eat that, human. It’s actual monster food, so it’ll make you heal faster,” Undyne said and that got your attention.

Humanity had learnt of monster food, which was essentially just made up of magical energy and when consumed it didn’t waste anything. There had been studies started before the war to find out how it scientifically worked but obviously that had been stopped promptly when other matters deserved more attention.

“It’s not poison?” you asked because you couldn’t help but want the confirmation. Even with the food gone cold, it looked good and your stomach was growling as you’d skipped breakfast because of the nerves and hadn’t consumed any food all day.

Undyne snickered. “We don’t want you dead, idiot. We just want you to tell us where Frisk is. It’s not a big request.”

But it was. You didn’t actually know for sure but you had a pretty good idea of what would be Frisk’s final destination. All monster sympathizers were sent there but that was top secret and you’d only discovered the place because you’d accidentally picked up confidential papers from the company printer, thinking that they were your print-outs.

However, giving up that information would put lives at risk and you couldn’t do that. Monsters had killed too many humans and you didn’t want to attribute to their ever-growing numbers. You’d seen Undyne’s throwing a spear making a beeline straight for one of your colleagues and the images still haunted you, even if you hadn’t seen the bloodshed that must have followed.

Even if the fish monster seemed rather casual and non-threatening now, you knew that with a flick of her wrist the blue spear of death would materialize.

“You’re not going to break, are you?” Undyne said and broke the silent tension that had been building for minutes. You’d been evaluating her but she’d been evaluating you as well.

You would like to think that you wouldn’t. But you weren’t sure what kind of torture they might apply to you. Who’d know then? But all in all, you felt fairly confident that you wouldn’t give out the confidential location that you suspected Frisk might have been taken to. Firstly, it wasn’t for certain, so it wasn’t hard to pretend that you didn’t know. You only had a suspicion, not a guarantee.

“No,” you answered and looked up to glance at Undyne’s face only to find the fish monster screaming and launching herself across the room and finding the tip of her notorious spear pointed right at your chest. You knew a bit about magical attacks and that spear would sink into like a knife in soft butter. There’d be no resistance, as she’d force your vital organ to stop working.

Holding your breath and closing your eyes, you waited for the pain but it didn’t come. Undyne eventually pulled back but she seemed to glare your way, which wasn’t even possible if she was blind but she somehow managed it.

“How did you know about me?” Undyne asked, feigning nonchalance but you could tell that she was genuinely curious.

You shrugged, your heart still in your throat and the sound of blood pumping in your ears.

“The roaring and the glasses,” you said simply because you didn’t want to piss her more off but you didn’t want to go into details either. They didn’t know who you were and you’d like to keep it that way. It probably wouldn’t be wise to confess that you’d been studying monster history for three years.

“Not a lot of humans have figured it out. And it’s a battle cry,” Undyne mumbled and for a moment her tense and frowning features relaxed and she looked so young. How old did monsters even get? You know it depended on the species but you’d always thought that the main monsters that had been plastered all over the TV had been ancient, like the King and Queen seemed to be.

But Undyne looked young in that moment. It didn’t last long as she slipped on her usual frown as soon as she caught you staring.

“undyne?”

Sans suddenly appeared out of thin air in the doorframe. You startled but Undyne didn’t look fussed at all, as if Sans magically appearing was a common thing. Come to think of it, maybe it was.

“What do you want, bone head?” Undyne asked while sounding seriously unimpressed.

You were extremely impressed and terrified as more of Sans’ powers were revealed but you tried not to let it show on your face.

“i thought i told you not to talk to the human?” Sans said lazily, throwing in a yawn for good measure.

Or maybe it was to scare you because his teeth looked scary. They were pointy and the complete blackness of his throat gave you chills for some reason.

“You were being soft on her,” Undyne said as if that in itself was all the explanation needed.

Sans frowned at her and you looked with fascination as his skull seemed much more alive and mobile than it should have been able to if it had been a human skull. Not that a human skull would have been able to move much at all if all the skin had been stripped from it.

“She knows something and she’s not telling us. They’ve had Frisk for months, moving them around and around, and it’s been killing us all. You know it, Sans. If this puny human can lead us one step closer, I’m willing to torture her. I’d gladly do it. I’ve got a lot of rage issues with humans,” Undyne added the last part as she was staring straight at you and you tried to move backwards further, only for your back to hit the wall.

“i doubt scaring her will work,” Sans contemplated, looking at you in that eerie way that made you feel see-through.

“Please, I can practically feel the determination radiating out of her. She’ll never talk on her own but with enough applied force, she might just snap.”

“no,” Sans said resolutely and glared at Undyne with a lot of emotions in his tiny white pinprick eyes. Undyne wouldn’t be able to see it but his no also seemed to leave a vibration hanging in the air.

“But if we just…”

“not here,” Sans interrupted and turned to make his exit before looking back at you a final time. “eat your food, it’ll make you feel better. i’ll be back tomorrow. prepare to answer my questions.”

And with that he left, Undyne stomped after him promptly slamming and locking the door. You had a feeling you weren’t leaving any time soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The reader doesn't have a clue what she's gotten herself tangled in. And Sans and Undyne definitely have different opinions on how they should handle this. I hope you liked this chapter!
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday 27th.


	4. An Unlikely Fight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She was sick of being held prisoner and being interrogated by the skeleton monster, so she hatched a plan to attack him and escape her captivity. She knew it was a risky move to threaten someone as powerful as Sans but she did not imagine it turning out like this.

You have waited for ten days for the perfect opportunity to present itself. You’ve remained tightlipped since then. It was that fatal slip of the tongue that landed you in this mess to begin with. Why did you have to open your big mouth and reveal that you’d talked to Frisk, the person they’d been looking for? It had only earned you the undivided attention of the persistent and scary skeleton.

Perhaps you opened your big mouth because your conversation with Frisk had resonated deep within you. Their words, or rather their written words and signs, had made you question everything you’d based your life on for the last four years. This past week and some had given you plenty time to contemplate it. You were left alone outside of the hour where Sans was either staring at you menacingly, bombarding you with questions in a threatening manner or more recently trying to make you laugh and crack with horrible puns.

His approach had changed a few days ago and you had to admit the pun route was odd. What would making you laugh accomplish? Did he really think that he could make you like him and therefore spill human secrets to the monster race that seemed intent on enslaving all of you? He had another thing coming if that were the case. You were stubborn as hell and didn’t let your morals waver.

Eventually, your approached paid off. One day he came stumbling in, clearly in a state and he smelled of strong alcohol. Why he was in here in this state baffled you so much that you almost forgot your plan.

“there’s you are…” he slurred pointing a phalange in your direction. “ready to answer my questions this time?”

“Why were you drinking?” you answered quickly, completely ignoring his question.

The notion that monsters seemed to be able to get drunk just like humans was a fascinating one. You indulged your curiosity. You’d been learning so much about the monster’s world from the way Sans would make puns or the way he’d frame questions or even how he’d threaten you with bodily harm. Despite his threats, the worst he’d done was clutch onto your arm enough for it to bruise that first day but nothing more since then. And there was the holding you against your will, which didn’t hurt but terrified you more than a punch. He seemed to know that.

“none of your bonesss, punk,” he quipped and leaned against the wall. He seemed smaller like that. He wasn’t that tall to begin with but he was wide and strong, even without taking his magic into account. He snickered and made a hand movement your way, which felt like a gush of wind but much softer than he’d ever shoved at you before.

A full on physical attack seemed like a horrible idea, especially since you weren’t violent at all. However, Sans has made it abundantly clear that you weren’t leaving until you gave them information on where Frisk might be held and you wouldn’t do that. You couldn’t betray your fellow humans like that.

The story of powerful monsters like Sans had sent chills down your spine when you were the war first started but you’d been his captive for over a week and you gotten to know a bit about him. He genuinely seemed to love puns and he always looked expectantly at you after cracking one. He smelled vaguely of ketchup at all times. He could be mean but he seemed almost sad when resorting to restricting your movements to scare you.

The knife had been hidden under your bed for a several days now after you’d managed to swipe it from your food tray. You’d waited until a day where Dogamy had been distracted and pacing around out front, while mumbling to himself to apologize to “her”, which you suspected was the other dog guard that brought you food occasionally. He hadn’t even questioned the lack of knife when picking up the tray of half-eaten food, too lost in his own world.

Over time, you’d run the dull knife against the steel frame of the bed, sharping it so much that it drew blood the instant that it met your fingertip when you tried it out yesterday. You weren’t sure exactly how much damage it would do to Sans but you had to try something.

You could play the outwardly obedient albeit silent captive for a long time but you wouldn’t allow yourself to become it. You needed to get out of here. Even if monsters weren’t as bad as you’d been told your whole life, which seemed increasingly possible, they still had countless of human deaths on their hands. It wouldn’t do.

Sans didn’t seem to mind your silence. He’d probably gotten used to it. In fact, he just sighed, closed his eye sockets and rubbed a hand over his brow. How a skeleton head could be so expressive was another mystery that you wanted the answers to but you knew he’d never tell you. However, this brief moment gave you the perfect opportunity to strike.

It was now or never.

Putting your distaste of violence aside and trying not to think about his magic, you made your move.

You managed to catch him by surprise, knife pressed close and slicing slightly into the vertebrae. He sputtered, eye sockets flying wide and he grasped for air, either of which made sense without eyelids or lungs. You had expected to feel a blow; a flash of rage and for him to fight back and properly hurt you. You were essentially cornering him in with his back to the wall and your elbows on the wall beside his head, one holding the knife and pressing down.

However what you found in his eyes were fear, which almost made you tumble back immediately but you stopped yourself. Sans had powerful magic, he was a murderer and him being scared of you should be a good thing, even if it made your stomach churn uncomfortably. You never wanted conflict with anybody and holding a knife to someone’s throat definitely qualified as conflict.

“please…”

Again, that wasn’t what you’d expected to hear. Why was Sans the supposedly merciless skeleton monster begging for mercy at your hand? Why wasn’t he fighting back? Your plan had been the best you could come up with but that didn’t mean that it was good. Why wasn’t he throwing your body across the room? You should be working on getting him to take you outside but he sounded so fragile and unlike his cocky self.

“I… I d-don’t…” you stuttered, unsure how to proceed. “Why aren’t you fighting back?” you asked and pressed the knife just a tiny bit deeper into the bone it was caught in.

“don’t!” Sans begged, his eyes flooding with fear anew. “any closer and you’ll dust me.”

You frowned. What was he on about? You knew monsters turned into dust when they died but to do that you’d have to hurt them badly enough for their HP to drop to zero. Most monsters had a significant amount of HP and powerful monsters, such as Sans, often had an incredible amount.

“Is it because you’ve been drinking? Is that why you aren’t doing anything? Has it inhabited your powers?”

Sans chuckled, ever so slightly. “no… it makes me slower, not unable. but…”

He didn’t seem like he wanted to finish the sentence and you wanted to press the blade in a little deeper but his warning was still ringing in your ears. You should probably press on as hard as you could if it would indeed dust him. It would be an incredible feat to dust a great monster like Sans but you couldn’t find it to do so in your heart. Sans could be lying of course but something in his expression made you doubt that.

Besides, you reveled in the shift in power. You had been the underdog for so long, left at his mercy for what felt like a long time and by some miracle he now seemed to be at yours. You should be moving on though, instead of letting yourself enjoy this. It would only get you killed.

“Please go on and tell me why I shouldn’t press this blade in as deep as it’ll go. Who knows it might even decapitate you…” you tried to sound sinister and scary, just like Sans did when he talked to you sometimes, but it came out unsure and questioning.

“i… do you know about HP?” he said eventually, almost forcing his words out.

“Yes, health points or hit points, it depends. It represents how much damage you can endure before dying. It varies from monster to monster but powerful monster such as you usually have a higher count that regular monsters.”

“you know a bit, huh?” he raised a brow bone at you, just like you would an eyebrow. How did he even do that?

“Stop stalling, bone boy. You know the place you kidnapped me from. You seem intelligent enough to recognize it for what it was. Now tell me what is your point with this HP talk?”

“sorry, kid. it’s just a bit personal to say… but considering you’ve got me pinned down, i guess i don’t have a choice,” he said and then took what seemed to be a deep breath, despite his lack of lungs. “i only have one HP.”

Your eyes widened in surprise and the knife in your hand suddenly felt very heavy. One HP. If he took just one damage, he’d be dusted. How was he such a powerful monster? How had he gained that reputation when just one hard hit would wipe him out? It made no sense.

You felt more trapped than before with this new knowledge and the position you found yourself in. All previous plans of escape evaporated from your mind. You wouldn’t be getting out of here if that were the truth. You’d been ready to deal damage if he’d tried something, to chip away at his HP but if he was telling the truth then that couldn’t happen.

So what should you do?

 _Dust him_ , probably, said your logical side and the monster-hating mindset drilled into you.

 _Spare him_ , said your heart and the voices of Frisk and your always kind and patient parents.

“Is that why you’re not… I don’t know, flinging me across the room or something?” you asked before you could consider that you probably shouldn’t be giving him ideas.

He was always wearing a grin, which you’d hated at first but you saw the edges of his teeth soften and something resembling a real smile show on his skull.

“you were quicker than i realized. doing so now might accidentally cut me. so… we stand in a predicament, kid. dust me or let me go? we both know i won’t let you out of here, even with that knife against my vertebrae.”

Your legs were shaking now, as was the hand holding the knife.

“You’ll kill me if I do that… or worse.”

“what would be worse than death?” Sans asked and he sounded genuinely curious. It wasn’t lost on you that this was the most you’d talked since he started stopping by when you were first captured.

“Losing sight of who you are,” you answered honestly. You were dead anyway. You knew that you couldn’t make yourself dust him. It wasn’t in you. Your superiors would have called it weakness. You weren’t sure if that was entirely true.

There was strength in choosing kindness over cruelty or so you’d always thought. That didn’t mean that you couldn’t use this situation to get a few answers first.

“What are your plans with me?”

“plans? i’ve been telling you all along. we took you so you can tell us where frisk is. we need to get our kid back.”

“Your kid?” you snorted, like the hate mechanism inside of you spoke first. You’d heard your instructors take that tone with you whenever you brought up monsters in an even vaguely positive light. But then… Frisk had been doing the sign for family an awful lot during your time together. It was a shame that you weren’t better at sign language, so you could have understood all they were trying to tell you.

“we’re the only family they’ve got,” Sans said with conviction. “what did they say to you?”

You hesitated. Sans had wanted you to talk about Frisk this whole time and even if you were the one with the weapon, he was still manipulating you into fulfilling his original wishes. You didn’t want to give in but you found your mouth opening and the answer tumbling out anyway.

“They… I don’t know. They advocated on your behalf, I think. But they could just be a traumatized teenager. They’ve been through so much. They might not know and I was told that Frisk had been rescued from…”

“let me guess?” Sans said after chuckling hollowly in a way that sent chills down your spine. “from the big, bad monsters?”

He looked sinister then and for a moment you thought he’d attack you in some way. You tensed, ready for the blow or what else it might be, but nothing happened. Sans was just observing you with a watchful eye.

“Yes, Sans. That’s what we were told. It’s not a big stretch to believe that Frisk has some type Stockholm Syndrome, is it? That’s when a captive becomes attached to their captor.”

Sans seemed to be smirking at you and it made you feel off balance.

“frisk is fully capable of making their own decisions. no one could force them to do anything. if anything, frisk was the one leading the path to the surface. they wanted to unite their two worlds.”

Maybe you did believe him. Frisk had been so insistent that you believe them in the fact that monsters weren’t bad. They had seemed in their right mind but they could just have been masking the trauma. You did what you had to do to survive. They had even tried to make you promise to help them and the monsters. Of course, you’d never gotten to answer before you were interrupted. But you’d been on the verge of refusing but still… their pleading eyes were burned into your memory forever.

“What was your plan with me afterwards if I gave you the information you wanted?” you had to think forward. Dogamy or Dogaressa could come back to check up on you any moment.

Sans didn’t answer but his eyes bore into you and suddenly his white pinpricks disappeared and he looked terrifying with his fixed grin.

“why don’t you tell me and find out, pal?”

Your heart jumped into your throat and it was beating so loud that you knew Sans must be able to hear it too. He was scaring you again. Even when you had a knife to his throat, he was scaring _you_. That really wasn’t fair.

“What will you do if I let go?” you asked and your voice was no louder than a whisper. It didn’t matter with how close you were standing either way but you felt weak wanting to know how much hurt you’d have to endure after this failed stunt.

Sans seemed genuinely surprised his mouth falling open slightly.

“you… want to let me go? well, that would be knife of you.”

“A pun? Really, Sans?” you grunted in annoyance and then went through with the decision you knew had been coming for minutes. You were too weak to kill even a 1 HP monster.

You’d never killed anyone in your whole life. You thought that killing monsters wouldn’t be so bad. They weren’t like people with human feelings and they were evil to the bone, shit now you were internally using puns. But now you weren’t so sure about either of those two notions anymore.

Flinging yourself and the knife backwards, you dislodged it from his bone and you let your body fall onto the bed. You closed your eyes and waited for the pain. Maybe his magic would constrict your breathing like it had done back at the facility or he’d use you as a punching bag for his barred knuckles or worse… you shuddered and squeezed your eyes tighter. But nothing came.

You weren’t sure how long it took you to get the courage to open your eyes again but when you did, you found Sans still leaning against the wall, nonchalantly like he had before your attack. You frowned at him and he grinned back at you but without the sinister undertones that you’d expected.

“i’ll be taking that…” he said and the knife in your hand got surrounded by blue energy and flung itself out of your hand and into his. Right, you’d forgotten that you’d technically still been armed. It didn’t matter much when you didn’t have the guts to harm him. Did he want to use your own weapon on you?

Still he made no move to attack you in any way or even show that he was angry. You guessed you’d have acted a bit angrier if someone had almost killed you, even if they hadn’t gone through with it.

“What will you do to me?” you repeated but now it was reality and not hypothetical.

Sans pushed off the wall and walked toward the bed. You sat up, curling your legs under you and scooting to the far end as he sat down on the edge. He looked surprisingly non-threatening.

“why did you not go through with it? did you lack the backbone?”

It seemed like his eyes were shining with glee if that was even possible with blackness and tiny white pinpricks. But you relaxed a bit more at the pun because he seemed normal and still not angry, which confused you but you pushed that aside for this small stroke of luck.

“I’ve never… you know,” you said and waved in his general direction and then pointed at the knife and made a slash across the throat motion.

Sans eyes studied you keenly and you felt like he was seeing right through you. His brow bone shot up in what seemed to be surprise.

“you’re telling the truth,” he said, sounding astonished. You didn’t even want to think about that. How could he know? Was he seeing your soul or something? The mere thought made you shudder.

Humans didn’t know too much about souls but apparently they were something that both monsters and humans had, though they were different according to the limited research you had access to.

“Well… I thought it would be easier,” you confessed. “Monsters are… supposed to be these evil creatures with horns and fangs and glowing eyes. While the latter part is true… monsterkind seem only as evil as humankind and we don’t like to think of ourselves as evil. Flawed, yes and some people are evil but as a whole we deem ourselves as the good guys.”

It occurred to you that Sans wasn’t hurting you because for the first time since you’d gotten here, you were talking to him and probably revealing way to much. You shook your head.

If that was a play of manipulation, then he was good. Had he known you had the knife and would attack him? Would have risked it with his 1 HP? Did he even have 1 HP or had that been a lie? Fuck, you’d probably been royally played.

“You don’t even have one HP, do you?” you asked and pulled your knees to your chest and hid your face.

Silence hung heavy in the air.

“i do…” Sans said eventually, his voice pitched quiet and low. “i wasn’t lying. you’d have dusted me if you’d cut any deeper. you got the drop on me. i’m impressed. not many have done that…”

“And let me guess, the ones who have haven’t lived to tell the tale about it?” you bit back, your words muffled but the way your lips was making contact with your knees.

“i won’t kill you, pal.”

He sounded sincere but you needed to know and looked up to meet his eyes. You saw no trace of deception but would you even be able to tell with the skeleton?

“Why?”

“’cause i want you on our side. frisk must have liked you if they spoke about us. frisk is a great judge of character… most of the time. we only want them back.”

You felt the energy drain out of you.

“I can’t help you, Sans. I can’t give up locations where humans are hiding to a monster like you. I just… I almost wish… but no. I just can’t. I’m sorry about Frisk. They seemed to genuinely care for their monster family. Kept asking for a Toriel, which is the queen of monsters, isn’t she?”

Sans nodded and listened closely, surprisingly he wasn’t flinging you across the room in anger yet.

“I only spoke with them from a short time and I don’t understand sign language that well. They moved on before you attacked the facility. I’d only been working there for a month. I was just working late the night that they brought Frisk in. It was a mistake I was even there.”

You were breaking all the rules you’d carefully followed since you’d been captured. The number one rule was not to answer questions and give the monsters any useful information. But now it felt like the dam had broken and you couldn’t stop the words.

Sans would realize that you wouldn’t crack and you might likely not even have the information he sought. You were talking now, in broad terms but you wouldn’t allow yourself to give up locations. He’d kill you then, when you ceased to be useful.

“could you ever hurt a monster?” Sans asked and it wasn’t the question you’d been expecting.

“I don’t know. I thought I could but clearly this kafuffle with you showed that I wasn’t right. Why do you ask that of all questions?”

“’cause i want to invite you into my home to stay but not if you pose any danger to my brother. if you so much as lay a finger on him, even a stunt like before, you’re not only dead but viciously so.”

You gulped at the threat. This was the scary look you’d expected in Sans’ eyes from the moment you pulled away the knife. But his words made no sense? Why would he move you? And into his own home where he lived with someone he cared for?

It would be such a stupid move to invite your enemy so close but maybe Sans truly didn’t think that you were enemies? Frankly, you were having trouble remembering it too at the moment.

“Why would you do that?”

“you only know one side of the story and it’s ‘bout time you see the other side. then maybe you’ll understand why frisk is so important to us.”

You were staring at him, as he got up and opened the door and held it open for you. He shot a look in your direction at your curled up form on the bed and gestured for you to walk through the door.

Maybe he’d stab the knife into your back as you walked past but it seemed better to leave this cell, even if it seemed more like a dorm room than a cell. You hadn’t been outside in over a week and you had been sure you’d sealed your death warrant by attacking Sans and not going through with it.

Every moment that followed without you being dead, was just a bonus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact? This is actually the first scene I wrote for this story. It's the initial scene that inspired this whole story, so this particular chapter is very close to my heart. I hope you liked it! Did you imagine Sans reacting like that? Or the reader being caught so unaware and showed that looks can be deceiving and you never know what people are hiding? And we'll be meeting Papyrus next chapter! Anyone excited for that?
> 
> Thank you so much for reading. Let me know your thoughts? New update next Sunday, the 3rd of September, which is also the day I'm entering a dressage competition with my horse but I'll make sure the chapter get up for you.


	5. A Family's Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She wasn't sure what to expect when Sans told her that she was going to be staying at his home with his brother and things made even less sense when she met the bubbly and seemingly innocent Papyrus.

You followed Sans out your room and rode down the elevator in silence. He kept fairly close to you but not within your personal bubble. You kept waiting for him to turn to face you with a menacing grin and strangle you to death with his powers.

He looked almost harmless, hunched forward with his hands buried deep within the pockets of his hoodie. However, you knew just how deadly he was.

It was obvious that he thought himself a funny guy, so it was more likely that he was playing a joke on you and any moment he’d rip the rug out from under you. You matched his walking pace until the moment you came to the revolving doors. On the way in, you’d been squished between him and Undyne in one little section and it hadn’t been pleasant. Now, Sans paused and gestured for you to walk through first.

You did and took a moment to breathe in the fresh air for the first time in nearly two weeks. It seemed strange that so much time had passed since the monsters had attacked your place of employment. Days had blended together in your captivity but you’d made the best of them.

You’d made a workout plan for yourself, doing reps of sit-ups, crunches and jumping jacks. It had always looked ridiculous to you when you saw people in the movies that were in prison and worked out. You got it now because you’d begun to go stir-crazy of just sitting around all day with nothing to do.

Working out had been away to pass the time, to plan how you’d attack Sans with the stolen knife but it was nothing against breathing in fresh air. The window in your room had been bolted shut and wouldn’t open at all – you’d tried everything you could think of.

Sans looked almost bashful as he cleared his throat and startled you out of the little daydream.

“Sorry,” you muttered as a reflex, always ready to apologize, apparently even to your captors.

“it’s fine, human. come along,” Sans said and gestured off to the left.

You walked in silence, as you spend all of your energy meticulously noting the details of the surroundings. You’d expected to see something abnormal for it being the hub of monster activity but everything seemed so normal.

It was a decent sized town but still a town rather than a city. Monsters of all species were walking around causally, seemingly going about their day while carrying groceries or just strolling along chatting. There were humans amongst them too, even if the ratio was 1:10. It was still a lot more human sympathizers than you’d expected or would monsters let the humans they enslaved walk around freely? It seemed unlikely as you saw a monster and a human looking friendly and acting almost as if they were sweethearts.

You’d heard of the interspecies relationship but it was different to see it with your own eyes.

Several monsters waved in Sans’s direction but they didn’t say anything or try to approach him, even if you noticed them whispering as soon as the two of you had walked by.

You kept feeling bewildered that they just moved on as if there wasn’t an all-out war between humans and monsters going on at this very second. You knew civilians during the past wars had eventually gone back to lead fairly normal lives, even with daily bomb threats but for some reason it didn’t register that monsters would probably do the same.

Perhaps because everyone kept insisting they were more like animals than human. No one really commented on how humans were essentially animals too, if you wanted to argue that.

“why do you look so surprised, kid?” Sans asked, noticing your glaring with had become less and less inconspicuous with each passing moment.

“Nothing,” you said and shook your head. “It’s just… not what I imagined the monster capital would look like.”

“want us to be all rage and murder all the time, eh?” Sans asked and the notion seemed to amuse him as the edges of his grin moved upwards.

You wanted to tell him yes. That was what they’d taught you at the summer camp and it was what you heard on the news all the time. Sans and his buddies had kidnapped you and you’d seen the mass murder they’d left behind at the research center.

“Maybe,” you muttered, low enough that you hoped Sans wouldn’t catch it.

Suddenly, Sans came to a halt in front of a little two story house that looked straight out of a children’s drawing. It was square with a door in the middle and windows on either side. You raised an eyebrow at him in amusement that the big bad Sans would live in a house like this.

You didn’t get to comment on it because the next second your back thrown by force up against the wall of the house. Sans moved in on you slowly and you just watched unable to move. Your heart was beating so fast and your throat seemed to dry out but that could be the pressure you felt around your neck. Sans looked predatory as he stalked closer until stopping right in front of you.

You thought your vision might begin to blacken any second, as he’d undoubtedly squeeze the life out of you. Instead he just kept looking at you, or your chest specifically, which made you a bit uncomfortable. He was either staring at your boobs or your soul and you honestly weren’t sure which one you’d prefer.

“i meant what i said. one wrong look at papyrus and you’re out of here. capiche?”

You nodded, feeling surprised that you could move your head at all. Just as suddenly as it had come, the force pressing on you dissipated but you still felt slightly startled.

“I don’t want to hurt anyone. Clearly I’m not capable of it or you’d be a pile of dust instead of an asshole manipulating my body against my will,” you said with a newfound hostility.

He was playing nice one second but then the next he was reminding you that he was in total control at all times and didn’t care whether you liked it or not. Sans didn’t even looked remotely sorry about it. He was just grinning back at you unapologetically.

“welcome to my humble abone,” Sans said, clearly happy with his pun as he swung the door open.

Rolling your eyes, you stepped inside. You walked right into the small but cozy living room, and you could spot a kitchen tugged into one of the far corners behind a half wall and a stairway lead up to the first floor in the opposite corner. Again, this all seemed so normal, albeit a bit small.

If Sans was as all-powerful being as he appeared to be, surely that meant he could afford to live in a place bigger than this.

“SANS? IS THAT YOU?” came a booming voice from upstairs.

Then the light and bouncy steps could be heard on the stairs, the sound reminding you of how kids seemed to bounce everywhere they went, especially down stairs. A very tall skeleton came into view, very slender compared to Sans. He seemed to ooze energy in everything from his voice, his step and his demeanor.

The total opposite of Sans, who seemed endlessly laid back, even when threatening your life.

“WHO IS THIS? DO WE HAVE A HUMAN GUEST?” who you assumed to be Papyrus asked. He sounded thrilled about it, which threw you off completely. “HOW WONDERFUL! BUT SANS WHY DIDN’T YOU WARN ME BEFOREHAND? I WOULD HAVE DRESSED IN MY FANCIEST CAPE!”

“sorry, pap. it just came up,” Sans shrugged and threw his body onto the sofa, seemingly content to ignore you and his brother.

“WELL, EXCUSE MY RUDE EXCUSE OF A BROTHER. I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS AND I AM PLEASED TO MAKE YOUR ACQUAINTANCE. WHAT IS YOUR NAME, HUMAN?”

You hadn’t told Sans. It was one of his reoccurring questions. He tried to be subtle but he definitely quirked up when Papyrus asked you for your name.

You knew it was stupid but they had taken so much from you already. You didn’t want to give up your name and have that somehow lead back to the people you cared about. Sans hadn’t managed to make you give it up with his various approaches but you found yourself feeling softer towards the younger brother.

His whole presence just screamed innocent and adorable, even if you didn’t know how that was possible when he had a murderer for brother.

“I can’t give you my name unfortunately, it’s a human thing,” you lied, hoping Papyrus was naïve as he seemed. “But you can call me… how about Jane? Us human calls females that cannot be identified Jane Doe.”

“REALLY? WHAT A FASCINATING HUMAN CUSTOM!” Papyrus exclaimed, actually clapping his gloved hands together, even if the motion seemed off somehow.

“i like the doe part better. isn’t that what humans call those deer we sometimes spot in the forest?” Sans contributed from the sofa.

When you looked over, you found his eye sockets to be completely shut, even though nothing indicated that he had eyelids of any kind when they were open. Magic was truly astounding and you stamped down the idea of asking him if you could take a closer look.

Why would he humor you? You were just their prisoner held here until you told them what they thought you knew, even if you knew you’d never even give up your speculations.

“I AGREE WITH MY BROTHER. DOE IT IS. I HOPE TO WIN YOUR FRIENDSHIP BY THE END OF THE DAY.”

“My friendship?” you asked, confused.

“YES. CLEARLY SANS HAS ALREADY GOT IT. HE NEVER BRINGS FRIENDS HOME SO YOU MUST BE SPEICAL BUT LET ME ASSURE YOU, I AM THE BETTER SKELETON OF THE TWO OF US.”

“no argument from me, pap.”

“I WILL STILL PROVE MY WORTH TO OUR NEW HUMAN GUEST. NOW, I’LL GO TO THE KITCHEN TO PREPARE A WONDERFUL DISH FOR OUR GUEST. I HOPE YOU LIKE PASTA.”

Papyrus disappeared into the kitchen and instantly you heard the banging of pots and pans that indicated that indeed, Papyrus didn’t do anything quietly.

You took a few careful steps closer to Sans, who was still sitting on the sofa with his eye sockets closed and his cranium lulled back. You doubted he was a sleep no matter how peaceful he looked at the moment.

“Doesn’t Papyrus know why I’m here?” you asked in a whisper, for some reason not wanting the taller skeleton to overhear.

You should loudly be declaring that Sans had kidnapped you and Papyrus might set you free instantly. He seemed like the type to be honest. You put it down to not wanting to piss of Sans, as his warning still rang loud in your ears, even if you knew that wasn’t the whole reason.

“like i said this wasn’t planned, doe,” Sans replied, testing out the new nickname, which you weren’t sure how you felt about. “i hadn’t planned on taking you home but it became clear that you were going pretty crazy in that room.”

“You would too if you’d been locked in there for nearly two weeks, Sans,” you said accusatory. “I just don’t see how moving me into your home is going to benefit you, other than the fact you’ll be around more to terrify me or annoy me with stupid puns. Unless you wanted me here where you sleep because…”

You shuddered as your mind even went there. Like you thought earlier, some monsters really liked humans, so much they’d get involved with them romantically and sexually.

“woah, mind out of the gutter, pal. i told you i wouldn’t harm yah. is that so hard to believe?”

“You’re holding me against my will. You’re already harming me, idiot,” you snapped and then realized how stupid it was to speak that way to a monster who could just snap his fingers if he wanted you dead.

“i’ll let you go if you tell me where frisk is,” Sans repeated. It sounded like a broken record at this point and the sentence had begun to lose all meaning. Perhaps, mostly because you couldn’t trust it to be true.

“I don’t know, Sans. I can’t tell you something I don’t know,” you lied. Well, half lied. You weren’t sure about your inkling, even if you knew it was the most plausible explanation of where Frisk had gone.

“you’re hiding something, so you know something. until you see that we wish no harm and just want frisk back, you get to stay here.”

You grunted in frustration and stamped your feet like a ten year old having a tantrum. Sans was infuriating to be around and suddenly, you were happy he used to only stop by for an hour a day. What would it be like to be around him constantly?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we finally got to meet Papyrus! I hope you liked it, even if it's a bit on the shorter side. As always feedback is very appreciated. Also look at the font brothers talking in their fonts. I love the fact that AO3 can do that so damn much. Hopefully it's showing up alright on everyone's screens?
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday the 10th of September.


	6. A Restless Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She thought going to bed at the skeleton brothers' home would have been easier than the hotel room cell but she kept twisting and turning and trying to keep nightmares at bay. It was all too tempting to try and sneak off in the night but a certain skeleton catches her trying to escape.

Papyrus made spaghetti for dinner and fussed around to set the table with napkins and candles. You tried very hard not to find it endearing because Papyrus was a big scary monster, even if he didn’t act one bit like it.

He was curious to hear your praise for his cooking and you hesitated only for a moment before finding a way to vaguely say something that Papyrus would take as praise. The pasta was somehow both undercooked and overcooked. Sans had been watching you carefully during the whole ordeal and you really didn’t want to get on his bad side by insulting his brother. And frankly, you didn’t want to tell Papyrus regardless of Sans’ watchful eye. That would have been cruel and it wasn’t something you’d ever been.

After dinner, you’d helped carry dishes off to the kitchen. Papyrus seemed ecstatic with the help, bashing Sans for always being lazy and unhelpful. Afterwards, you all settled down in front of the television and Papyrus turned on an episode of Friends, which you found oddly comforting.

Papyrus told you how he’d thought that the box set had originally been videos on how to make friends with humans, so he’d been a little disappointed when he’d been proven wrong. However, you could tell by his reactions that he loved the sitcom anyway.

Sans had been quiet all night, as had you for most parts so it had been left to Papyrus to fill out the silence, which he hadn’t seemed to mind at all. However, it soon became late and the two skeleton brothers went upstairs. You caught something about a bedtime story but you didn’t pay too much attention.

The day was catching up with you rapidly and you turned off the television and got settled on the sofa with the blanket Papyrus had ceremoniously offered you before he went to bed.

You tried to get comfortable on the sofa but it just wasn’t happening. It was a soft enough surface, pudgy and welcoming even, and the blanket was thick, snug and warm. However, your mind wouldn’t quiet down.

The past ten nights you’d been sleeping in the hotel bed, if you could even call what you did sleeping. You’d only get a few hours at night and lapse into taking naps during the day to make up for it. Night had always been the time where your mind came alive with all sorts of ideas. So when monsters kidnapped you, all the buzzing inside your head thus became the nightmares. Undyne throwing a glowing spear through you. Sans looking down as he strangled you with seemingly nothing.

And now, knowing that one of the monsters that had been haunting your dreams was just upstairs, your mind certainly wouldn’t quiet down. Several times, you’d worked your heart to a racing pace thinking you could hear footsteps on the stairs. Sans would come down and hurt you until you told him what you knew.

Every time, it had been a false alarm but after a couple of hours your nerves were shot and there was no way you’d be getting any sleep right now. You didn’t know what the day tomorrow would look like, so it probably wasn’t a good idea to run on no sleep but you didn’t have much of a choice.

Exhausted by the nightmares and tricks your mind played, you got up as quietly as possible and made your way to the door. You could make a run for it.

You were just wearing a T-shirt and sweatpants; the fourth set the monsters had given you now. At first, you’d refused to change out of your own clothes but eventually they became a bit to grimy and you reluctantly had pulled on the borrowed items they’d offered you.

It was not unbearably cold outside, judging by the walk to the skeleton home but autumn was here and the days were turning colder and colder. Still, you had to try. You would have been patient and planned an attack just like you’d done with the knife but even with your planning that had backfired into your face.

You now knew that it didn’t matter if you got the jump on Sans or Papyrus for that matter because you wouldn’t be able to kill them. Maybe you would be able to excuse it if it was pure self-defense but not unless you really feared for your life in that moment.

Technically killing your kidnappers would probably be self-defense at all times but you knew it hadn’t felt like that. And you knew by the law that killing monsters weren’t even seen as murder. Humans could do it without any repercussion whatsoever, which slightly sickened you after having been taught just how alike humans the monsters were.

You took a trying step towards the door, pausing to see if Sans would appear. It seemed safe enough and you made it all the way there without anything happening. You put your hand on the doorknob and prepared to turn as you felt a chill go over your body.

“what did i tell you?” Sans’, by now familiar, voice asked.

You froze with your hand on the doorknob but not because Sans’ restricted your movement. It was out of fear for what might happen now. You’d still been waiting for some backlash for attempting to kill him as well, even if your intention had changed midway through.

“I was trying to leave,” you said truthfully and spun around to face the monster. “How did you know?”

“i listened for you,” he answered with a shrug and you took in how casual his stance still was.

There was no tension in his body to display the anger he should have felt towards you. He just seemed a bit down. Upon closer inspection, you saw how the areas under his eye sockets seemed sunk in and darkened. You could put it down to just how he looked as a monster but Papyrus didn’t look like that and they were brothers.

It looked unmistakably like someone who hadn’t slept, which was weird because you’d seen him seemingly snoozing several times during the Friends episodes and Mettaton movie you’d watched after dinner.

“I couldn’t sleep,” you explained. “And it seems like you couldn’t either.”

He didn’t deny it and just shrugged his shoulders. “don’t sleep much.”

You stood there for a moment, frozen in the living room and just staring at each other until Sans finally broke the silence.

“come, let me show you something,” he said and moved towards you, or rather the door behind you but you stumbled back as he made it near you. He raised one of his brow bones at the action but he didn’t comment.

He held open the door for you and it felt like a trap waiting to happen. You’d tried to leave; he’d arrived to stop you only to hold open the door for you moments later. Granted, you knew from painful experience that it was impossible to run away from him but it still felt odd.

You tracked after him as he walked around the side of the house, into a rather big garden that you wouldn’t have guessed belonged to the relatively small house. He kept walking with you behind him until he reached a little hilltop near the end of the garden where he sat down and laid on his back.

You sat down next to him at a safe distance. The night air was chilly enough to make you shiver just in your T-shirt. Perhaps, you wouldn’t have made it far with your escape attempt. Sans noticed because he seemed to notice everything about you and in one swift movement, he was pulling off the blue hoodie you always saw him wear and offering it to you.

You gaped. You’d been on dates where boys wouldn’t even think of that, yet here with the supposedly ruthless monster he was worried about you getting cold.

“i always forget how sensitive you are to temperature,” Sans said as an explanation for the action and nudge his hand and the hoodie in it a little closer.

It felt wrong to accept it but maybe if you could play nice, he’d let you go or maybe you were just being foolish and cold and a horrible judge of character.

“Thanks, Sans,” you said and slipped it on.

It was big on you but soft and comfortable. There was some residual heat in it, which made you wonder if Sans’ bones ran hot rather than cold like you’d expected. There was so much that humans didn’t know about monsters and you’d wanted to learn everything you could. That’s why you decided on biology with a minor in monster history. You’d be able to combine the two and learn about these creatures that now shared your world.

Even if the war might eventually wipe all of them out.

Sans looked different without his hoodie, you noted. He’d lied back down immediately and closed his eye sockets. Now there was just a white T-shirt covering his chest. His hands were pulled behind his head, so you couldn’t see how his finger joints were stuck together but you got the view of his arms and some of his legs too because of his apparent love for shorts.

“why are you staring like that? want to jump my bones?” he teased as his eye sockets opened and you immediately looked away. You even felt the heat rise in your face. He definitely just said that, even if his tone had remained light and teasing without any real intention behind it.

“No, I just find monsters interesting,” you said, deciding to be honest. “You’re so different from us and sometimes it’s difficult to distinguish between what’s truth and what’s propaganda. Humans think we know a lot about monsters but I don’t think that true anymore.”

“i’m sorry.”

“What?” you asked, your face snapping back to look at Sans.

“i never did apologize for all of this. i know you want to go home, pal. and I see the stubbornness but i also see a kind and honorable heart. you’re the only real lead we’ve had on frisk in a month. we just want them back.”

Of all the things that had happened when you awoke this morning, from almost killing Sans then moving in with him and his brother, Sans apologizing was the last thing you’d imagined. He’d been all-tough “this kidnapping shit is justified” up until right now. Perhaps you opening up as well as treating Papyrus respectfully had made him realize you were more than just someone, who maybe had information he wanted.

He’d clearly had standards with promising not to hurt you several times, but he’d never seemed apologetic before.

“I can’t say that it’s okay but I suppose I do appreciate the sentiment. However, I must iterate I won’t tell you anything I know about human bases of operation. Even if I had information like that, I wouldn’t give it up to the monsters we’re at war against. I can’t put innocent lives at risk like that.”

“we’re only at war because you humans insist on it. we didn’t want war. we just wanted justice for the attack that killed our king and wounded many of our best fighters.”

You knew only the vague details of the attack he mentioned. That had been the tipping point and the spark that officially started the war. There had been a meeting between high ranking human officials and monster representatives where a bomb had gone off. However, as far as you knew the monsters had placed it there as it took out all humans present, with the exception of ambassador Frisk, who was on the monsters’ side, and only resulted in one casualty for the monsters: their king Asgore.

But maybe that hadn’t been the truth either.

After all, the first victim of war was always the truth.

You wanted to voice all the questions forming in your mind but they were coming at you too fast and you weren’t sure if Sans would answer them anyway. He’d shut you down when you asked Papyrus about the war. You lied down in the grass eventually and the two of you stayed silent for a few moments and you found that your mind only quieted down when you started focusing on the stars and mapping out the constellations.

You must have muttered their names under your breath because Sans turned to face you.

“y’know, one thing that the underground really missed was a view like this. humans take the night sky for granted every single night but every single day at least a couple of monsters here come out just to look up at it. to remind ourselves that we got up here in the end. things were supposed to be better up here,” Sans said in a quiet voice, sounding almost solemn.

“I’m sad that it turned out like this,” you said. “Monster and humans reuniting should have gone better than this.”

“maybe we’ll get to redo it,” Sans said, which made no sense to your sleep deprived mind, unless time travel was suddenly possible. And even if it was who could say that you could change the opinion of so many people?

You stayed in comfortable silence for a while as you contemplated how little you truly knew about the monsters you shared the world with; monsters, who were played off like ruthless unintelligent animals with an unquenchable blood thirst. Clearly, they were very capable of killing humans but you were in a state of war and human soldiers had done the same since the dawn of time to each other.

It was unsettling to realize that monsters had quiet, calm moments too. Like Sans and the other monsters wanting to see the night sky to remind them that they finally got out.

On a whim, you opened your mouth and started explaining the constellations you were mapping out earlier. Perhaps, if you found monsters so intriguing then monsters found humans and their customs intriguing as well. You shouldn't try to make nice with Sans just for the sake of it. But there was a plan in the back of your mind. If he trusted you then you might just get the leeway to escape. However, part of it had also been due to the fact it was so tiring to stay resentful all the time. It had been burning you up from the inside and it wasn't getting you anywhere. You couldn't change that they’d taken you, but you could plot your escape and make the most of it while doing so.

Sans turned halfway to face you, watching as your hands moved as you tried to trace out the collections of stars that glowed a little brighter and in patterns. You did your best to recall all the names but only the easy ones seem to come to mind. 

The skeleton besides you didn’t seem to mind one bit. Every so often, he’d let out a little huff of acknowledgement and once he made a joke about the Little Dipper being jealous of the Big Dipper. 

It was just the kind of quiet night and distraction you needed from the nightmares that kept you awake. The irony that the star of your nightmares was the one to grand you this moment of peace weren’t lost on you.

Eventually, you just couldn’t stop yawning and by some silent agreement Sans got to his feet. He held out a hand to help you get up but you gently shook your head in rejection and got up by yourself. 

You could have been mistaken but it looked like hurt flashing across his features for a moment before it was back to the ever-present grin. 

The grass was damp around your bare ankles and it was enough to keep you conscious as the two of you made it back to the house. Sans held open the door and you stepped through without a fuss. 

Getting snuggled up on the sofa seems more comfortable now with heavy limbs and the nightmare disproven. You settled with the blanket, feeling more groggy and less worried now.

Sans had repeated again that he wouldn’t hurt you and it had eased your worries to know that when he had appeared, it hadn’t been to rip you to shreds or torture you for information like your imagination had been telling you. Even if Sans came downstairs again, you doubted that he’d hurt you. At least not right now. He seemed oddly pacifistic.

It wasn’t until you woke the next morning that you realized that you were still wearing Sans’ hoodie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just find the idea of them star-grazing together so adorable? Like even if the reader is constantly waiting for Sans to turn sinister and do something evil. She's got so much to learn. Also borrowing his hoodie to sleep in was too adorable to miss out on. 
> 
> I hope you liked this chapter. Next update will be in a week, on Sunday 17th of September.


	7. A Different Perspective

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She was still waiting for the other shoe to drop but both skeleton monsters just acted really nice? Papyrus was energetic and bubbly happy, which was utterly contagious, and Sans kept being more kind and considerate than she'd expect a murderous monster to be.

You woke with a start the following morning, disoriented and confused. You’d expected to see the beige rooms of the hotel you’d been held at but instead your eyes focus on the cozy living room.

For the first time since being taken by the monsters, you had a decent amount of sleep. You felt pleasantly warm all over and it was only when you looked down your form that you noticed the familiar blue hoodie, which most certainly wasn’t yours. Slightly embarrassed that you’d just stolen his hoodie to sleep in, you unzipped it frantically and tossed it towards the bottom of the sofa as you pulled your legs up. 

“AH GOOD TO SEE YOU AWAKE, HUMAN,” greeted a booming voice from the edge of the kitchen. “THIS MORNING YOU WILL HAVE THE PLEASURE OF MORE OF MY WONDERFUL COOKING. I AM MAKING AN OMELET!”

“That's great, Papyrus,” you told him and covered mouth as a yawn overtook you.

Turned out Papyrus couldn’t really figure out how to make an omelet and it turned into lightly burned scrambled eggs. Despite his overenthusiasm and clear fondness for it, the kitchen did not seem to be his friend. 

Sans didn’t make an appearance and Papyrus had only decked out two plates. Perhaps the older skeleton was away. This could prove the perfect time for an escape.

“Papyrus, is your brother not home?” you asked and hoped the longing wasn’t evident in your voice.

“THAT LAZY BAG OF BONES IS STILL SLEEPING. IT'S A MIRACLE IF HE'S OUT OF BED BEFORE NOON. ALL HE DOES IS SLEEP,” Papyrus complained and shoved a forkful of eggs into his mouth.

You hummed, thinking over the monster’s words. It didn’t reassure you in the slightest that Sans might be sleeping because he seemed to have a weird sense of you, even last night when you had thought he was sleeping. It had turned out he hadn’t and the way he’d talked about, it seemed like a common occurrence. But he might have been hiding that fact from Papyrus who seemed to strongly believe Sans spent most of his time catching Zs.

After breakfast, you helped clean up and noticed the many cookbooks stacked up in the corner. More surprisingly all of them looked new or at the very least untouched. They lacked the certain grubbiness cookbooks so easily got because you checked them with tainted fingers. 

“Do you ever make anything from these?” you asked and Papyrus went on a long rant about how human instructions confused him. 

You’d been flipping through a baking book while he was talking and the recipes were far from complicated. This particular book was made for children, even if it was explicitly stated that you should only use the oven with parental supervision.

“These look good,” you mused, pausing at some simple chocolate chip cookies.

“HUMAN... COULD WE MAKE THEM?” Papyrus asked, his voice timid and uncertain. 

You looked up at that pleading face, which didn’t invoke the terror it should have to be staring at a monster like that. 

You caved instantly, against your better judgment, and you went on a hunt for ingredients in the kitchen. Surprisingly, the fridge and cupboards were well stocked, so flour, eggs, sugar, milk and the like was easy to find. Chocolate became more of a challenge but Papyrus darted up the stairs and came down with a chocolate bar a moment later. 

It look way longer than it should have done but it was kind of fun. It had been ages since you’d baked anything but you remembered the joy of staying with your grandparents and how your grandmother always would get you involved in baking whatever delicious treat she’d planned. It made you miss all the people you’d lost but thankfully Papyrus’ chipper babbling didn’t let you dwell on the sadness.

You couldn’t help but notice that way Papyrus never grabbed anything with his right hand, always going for his left first and he only used the other to balance things. Of course, his hands were both covered by gloves - and he refused to take them off, even if you pointed out how unhygienic it was - so you couldn’t really know for sure. But speculation always came easy to you, part of being naturally curious, so you put it down to him having injured it in some way. You’d been on the brink of bringing it up several times but you always chickened out. You had an eerie feeling that Sans would pop out of nowhere and knock you into next week if you asked. 

Eventually, the cookies made it into the oven and the pair of you were only partly covered in flour. 

“YOU ARE A FINE TEACHER, HUMAN. EVEN IF YOU DON'T HOLD A CANDLE TO MY MENTOR UNDYNE.”

You tried to hide the flinch at the fish monster’s name and Papyrus didn’t comment, so you must have done a good enough job.

It became quite clear that Papyrus wasn’t the most patient type and he kept asking when the cookies would be done. Eventually, he sat down on the floor and just stared at the oven. You’d wiped down the counter and then decided to hop up on it and sit there while you waited.

“Papyrus, can I ask how old you are?”

The skeleton looked puzzled at the question. 

“SANS SAYS THAT TIME UNDERGROUND WORKED DIFFERENTLY THAN UP HERE BUT BEFORE WE CAME UP, I HAD JUST REACHED THE AGE WHERE I COULD BE ACCEPTED INTO THE ROYAL GUARD. I BELIVE I WAS WHAT YOU HUMANS CALL A TEENAGER?”

You nodded. That information vaguely matched up with what you’d have expected. You’d been sixteen when the monsters came to the surface. That would make you and Papyrus roughly the same age, with him potentially being a little younger or older. 

You wondered how old Sans was by comparison. He acted somewhere between a big brother and a parental figure to Papyrus so maybe there was a big age gap. But the behavior might just be explained by something in their past. 

“What about Sans?” you asked. In reality, you wanted to ask more complex questions like skeleton monsters’ lifespan but you somehow doubted that Papyrus would be able to answer that.

“you could just ask me,” Sans said from where he was slouched over the railing where he’d apparently been spying on you. He was just in a T-shirt and your eyes immediately fell to the exposed bones in his arms and hands. “get it straight from the skeleton’s mouth.”

“SANS IS ONLY A LITTLE OLDER THAN ME,” Papyrus argued taking the thunder away from Sans and his stupid joke. 

That did shock you, even if it didn’t surprise you. The terrifying Sans who’d murdered who knows how many people was only in his early to mid twenties depending on what Papyrus constituted as a little.

You shivered in your spot on the counter.

“how are the cookies coming along, pap?” Sans asked and strolled down the stairs with the demur of a lazy cat. You weren’t even sure how Sans knew you were making cookies.

“I HAVE HIGH HOPES. THE DOUGH THE HUMAN MADE ME TRY WAS DELICIOUS. I STILL DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY WE DIDN'T EAT IT LIKE THAT,” Papyrus complained just like he had multiple times after he tasted the cookie dough.

“It's supposed to turn into cookies, and I wanted to show you how to make them, so you can do it yourself,” you said and didn't dwell on the implicit message that you wanted to teach him to do it himself because you wouldn’t be around forever. 

Sans would eventually tire of having you around and not answering anything and consequently snap or you'd manage to successfully escape. Either of those two things would eventually happen, as you saw it. 

You had wanted to do this for Papyrus, simply because his bubbly attitude and enthusiasm for everything had made the time with staying at the skeletons’ home a little brighter. Sans was also more relaxed here in their home and you appreciated that. 

The cookies were delicious and Papyrus kept sneaking into the kitchen to grab more. You hadn’t been sure what to expect from today but you just spent the entire day in the house, watching Friends and eating cookies. Sans didn’t at any point question you about Frisk and it was nice but weird.

Dinner rolled around and you offered to help in the kitchen again, mostly because you didn’t want to eat half cooked/over-cooked spaghetti again. It took a lot of convincing for Papyrus to allow you to dunk the entire sting of spaghetti under water as soon as possible but he allowed it after what he dubbed The Cookie Success. 

Dinner passed much in the same way as before with Papyrus talking and you asking a few general questions. You kept it light, worried that Sans might shut you down but he remained mostly silent. Afterwards, you moved back to the sofa to watch more television until Papyrus suddenly stood up and declared that he was heading off to bed. 

You wondered how the brothers could afford to do nothing in a day and just stay home to watch you. 

As soon as Papyrus' bedroom door closed, Sans turned to you with a pointed look. He was wearing his hoodie again. It looked good and normal on him, though you wondered if he ever washed it.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" you asked him and fought not to squirm in your seat. You hadn’t been alone together since last night and Sans had been remarkably quiet throughout the day. 

“i said you weren’t allowed to hurt my brother in any way,” Sans said and he sounded like he was edging between two emotions, anger and something else.

“What are you on about? Hurting him? I baked cookies and taught him how to properly boil pasta!” you hissed, trying to keep your voice low. How good did the skeleton monsters hear anyway? That might be how Sans knew you’d gotten up last night. 

“you're making him believe that you’re friends,” Sans said and now he definitely sounded sad. “that's cruel when you hate monsters.”

You wanted to argue that you didn’t hate monsters. At least not all monsters, only the murderous ones, which unfortunately included Sans so you weren’t so sure about your segregation anymore. For four years all you’d heard had been monster-hating propaganda. Of course, you couldn’t shake that off easily and Sans were holding you here against your will so he was being somewhat of a hypocrite calling  _you_  cruel. 

“Your brother is nice, Sans. He hasn’t ever killed anyone, right?” you asked tentatively.

“no,” Sans confirmed but he looked on edge about his answer. “but he was hunting humans underground to give to asgore. he would have taken frisk to him if some of us hadn’t interfered.”

That surprised you. Frisk had been talking to adamantly about their family and you put together that they probably thought of Papyrus as part of that. Then it was surprising to know Papyrus had been hunting them underground to give to the Monster King who would strip their soul from their body. You shivered.

“And they were okay with that?”

Sans just shrugged.

“life moves on. pap just wanted to be part of the royal guard and impress undyne. frisk understands. they're very forgiving.”

“Is that what’s happening here?” you asked. “Are you hoping you’ll show me that monsters aren’t so bad and that I’ll forgive you for kidnapping me and for murdering so many of my fellow humans and I’ll just tell you every single thing I know about the human government structure?”

“a skeleton can dream. you don’t know half the things you think you do about monsters or me.”

“Enlighten me then!” you shouted, forgetting about being polite and not disturbing Papyrus.  

“all in due time,” Sans said and in a blink he was gone from the sofa. You hated when he did that and just to test the boundaries you walked up to pull the front door open but you hand froze mid-air. He was still watching you then, even if he was nowhere to be seen. 

You grumpily pulled your arm back, which he allowed, and you threw yourself back on the sofa and refocused on the Friends episode playing in the TV. 

Several hours later, your heavy eyelids were winning. It was way past midnight and you’d been keeping sleep at bay. Falling asleep would mean nightmares of sharp fangs and hollow eyes and you didn’t want that. You knew you’d have to sleep eventually but if you were on the brink of exhaustion then perhaps it would be dreamless.

“hey,” Sans called softly from the top of the stairs. You didn’t turn around to look his way and just kept your eyes on the TV. You were momentarily confused whether or not you’d slipped into your nightmares and just hadn’t noticed. 

“Are you really there or am I dreaming and you’ll come down and rip my head off?” you asked, delirious with lack of sleep.

“nah, beheading isn’t really my style, bucko,”  Sans said and chuckled. “do you often have trouble distinguishing between reality and dreams?”

He sounded so earnest and curious in his question and after a brief deliberation, you looked back to see him now at the bottom of the stairs but you haven’t heard the fall of his feet at all.

“Not as much before some bonehead of a skeleton monster kidnapped me,” you said but the words were lacking their usual bite. Besides, his enquiry had made you curious. “Do you? Or are you an insomniac? It would seem to match up with the constant drifting off to sleep during the day but staying up freakishly late and unless you’re just doing it to spy on your prisoner.”

“you're not my prisoner,” he argued weakly. “and yeah, sleep and i have some problems. most on account of me worrying whether time resets again. i'd never know what version of them we would have each time down there.”

You vaguely recalled how the monsters had talked about abilities to manipulate time. Alternate timelines were something known to science in the way that one choice might spur the world to develop in a way that could have been different if one event had changed. Some things shaped history. But time resetting, as in going back in time, seemed far-fetched even in a world where monsters existed.

“Sometimes, Sans, you talk about things like you’re the only one who knows what’s going on. Like all of us are running around like chickens with their heads cut off.”

“how would chickens be able to run around without their heads?”

“It’s a metaphor,” you explained and got to your feet to stretch out your back. For all his flaws, Sans had helped you perk up and stay more awake. “But actual chicken do that sometimes. That’s how the metaphor got started. Their nerves are still active and functioning even if the lack their brain, at least for a little while. They die eventually. But for a while they can run around like brainless creatures. That's how it feels like you talk about humans sometimes.”

“i don't think humans are brainless. you’re smart and resourceful but you’re cruel and prejudiced too.”

You nodded in agreement because to be fair, humans could be that and it was probably the way you came across to monsters. Just like they appeared strong, unpredictable and scary to you. Some humans had a mean streak but most people were kind and compassionate, right? You desperately hoped that to be true.

“You don’t happen to have tea, do you?”

Sans shrugged. “maybe. paps buy at lot of stuff at the human supermarket. check the cupboards.”

With his permission, you scavenged through the kitchen and found a packet of chamomile tea. It was only missing one tea bag.

“Success,” you said and waved the tea at Sans before filling the kettle and setting it to boil the water. 

Sans moved into the kitchen from where he’d been lingering in the doorway. He smiled fondly. 

“What?” you asked and turned your full attention to the skeleton monster.

“it's just that pap thought that was spices. he poured it over pasta once. he’d never admit how... off it tasted but he didn’t try to cook with it again.”

It had been a long time since you had properly bellyaching laughed. Your eyes crunched up and you bend forward and clutched your stomach. It felt wonderful to laugh and imagining poor Papyrus ripping open a teabag and pouring it on his undercooked pasta did just that. Sans would undoubtedly just sit there and not give any indication that the food had been made inedible. He seemed like he would be unable to say a single unkind word to or against his younger brother. 

As you came down your laughter high, you apologized and wiped your eyes. When your gaze eventually fell to Sans, who was being entirely quiet during the whole ideal, you worried for a split second that your laughter could be seen as an offense against his beloved brother. But he didn't look mad; in fact he looked more in the realm of fondness.

“don't sweat it, doe. your laugh makes this old bag of bones think of a happier time.”

Your lips tilted up slightly into a shy smile and the kettle finished and you pulled out two mugs, from the rather large collection, especially considering you’d never seen either brother with a hot drink. 

You chose a HelloKitty mug for yourself, mostly for the hilariousness of it, and pulled out a black mug with Comic Sans writing on it. It had occurred to you that both brothers seemingly had been named after fonts but it hadn’t weighted much on your mind. 

The words said 7 days without a pun makes one weak

You cracked another small smile at that as you placed the two mugs on the coffee table and sat down on the sofa. You pulled the blanket with you, a silent indication that it was okay for Sans to join you, which he did. 

The TV was still on playing yet another episode of Friends but by now it was more of a background noise. Sans shifted uncomfortably in his seat before wrapping his skeleton hands around the mug. It made a funny sound as the two materials made contact. 

As the tea finished drawing to your liking, you got up to pull it out and with a second of consideration extended your hand to take Sans' mug too. He handed it over and you went to the kitchen dispose of the bags before walking back with the two mugs. You’d expected there to be prodding questions or more talk but the two of you sat in silence, the only noise filling the room the sound of the TV and the tea being drunk at a slow pace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked this chapter. What did you think about the detail of Papyrus and the tea bags? When I thought of it, I instantly giggled to myself at the mental image. And the reader is slowly beginning to let her guard down. This chapter was very calm and cosy but brace yourself for a more action-filled next chapter. 
> 
> Next week will be in a week, Sunday the 24th of September.


	8. An Unexpected Attack

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She wanted to go out and explore the city but she was scared to approach the subject with Sans and if she was allowed outside, would she be prepared to face the dangers she might meet?

The next week continued like that. In the day, you’d bake with Papyrus who had gone shopping to buy practically every ingredient that could be found in the baking book. He’d been shy to ask but lit up like a Christmas tree when you agreed to help him bake. It was a good way to pass the time and most of the time it turned out delicious baked goods by the end of your endeavors. Sometimes, you messed up the recipe but most of the time it went well. 

You’d stay up late, eyes pointed in the direction of the TV but mostly your mind was contemplating and cataloging the information you learnt each day. You wanted to write it down but if you asked for a notebook it would only bring questions that you didn’t want to answer. You couldn’t very well tell them that you’d been using your time to study the two skeleton monsters. 

You knew so much already and Papyrus wasn’t as tight lipped as Sans. The only topic he didn’t want to go near was his right hand. He never took of the gloves he always wore but he never grabbed for anything with his right like he did his left. You were growing increasingly certain that it was due to some human inflicted injury, so you didn’t press the issue. But it was an unsettling discovery that you felt mad at whoever had hurt Papyrus, who was a still monster but perhaps listening to his innocent rambling for hours on end had changed your mind.

Sans would come down each and every night without fail. You’d make tea in the same two mugs and sip in silence. You had never understood how some people could just sit beside someone, not talking, not doing anything in particular, but it made sense with Sans. It felt weird too because you’d essentially moved in on the sofa but you were still held here and not allowed to leave.

All in all, the first seven days staying at the skeleton brothers' house were a stark contrast to the first ten days when you'd stayed in the hotel room. You’d hardly been eating, out of fear that the food was poisoned. You’d spent your days then pacing around and plotting your escape plan, which you now knew had spectacularly failed. You were still thinking of how to get out of here but it wasn’t at the forefront of your mind anymore. You knew this was an amazing opportunity to study and learn about monsters up close. By now, you figured that you weren’t in imminent danger, so it would be a waste not to stick around a bit for the sake of scientific advancement. 

On the seventh night though, you found yourself breaking the silence while having the usual AM tea session with Sans. You’d learnt most of what you could; at least the significant bits. Papyrus' stories had begun to run in a circle. Sans was still tight lipped, or tight teethed. 

"Do you ever plan on letting me go outside?" you asked Sans, who shifted in his seat and sat up a bit straighter. He’d been slouched back and completely relaxed before you opened your mouth. It was a silly question and you braced yourself for the cruel laugh and outright rejection because, of course, a kidnapped human had no business outside but Sans surprised you.

“i didn't know you wanted to,” Sans replied and shrugged. “thought monsters frightened you.”

“I think I might becoming immune after living here. You big, bad skeleton monsters aren’t that bad when I’ve seen you with rumbled clothes, tripping over your slippers and Papyrus being an adorable but pretty useless cook. And aren’t you the one who insists that monsters aren’t all that bad?”

“yeah... but tibia honest i didn't think you were listening,” he replied. You didn't miss the subtle pun. “but monsters can still be dangerous. some resent humans for first the imprisonment underground and then you guys starting a war almost immediately after we finally got out.”

“But you’d look after your investment, wouldn’t you? I can’t very well tell you anything if I'm dead,” you reasoned but Sans’ warning had stirred the monster hating propaganda you’d been fed for years to the surface. Sans admitted monsters were dangerous, which wasn’t something that should have been easy to forget. It shouldn’t be something that should ever be able to slip your mind and yet, it almost had.

“you're not an investment," Sans argued. “do you truly think that i see you that way?”

You shrugged. “I don't know what you think I am anymore, Sans. You don’t exactly treat me like a prisoner like you did before. Is there anyway we can just skip to the part where you let me go?”

“what makes you think i’d ever let go?” Sans asked and the sinister voice was back; the underlying tremor that promised violence and misery. He hadn’t used that voice ever since he threatened you not to hurt Papyrus when he first brought you into their home.

Your breath caught and when you looked to Sans his white pinpricks were gone. It was an indicator of when he turned menacing. You’d learnt it pretty early on, even before being relocated to the house. But then in a flash the pinpricks were back and his grin widened and expanded. 

“only pulling your leg,” he said. 

The relief was instantaneous, even if you weren’t sure if he was truly joking or just saying it to mask his true intentions.

“Prick,” you muttered and actually shoved him, in what could only be described as a playful manner. Your hands only caught on his hoodie but he looked startled as you pushed him back slightly. 

This was too peculiar but at that moment you decided to stop questioning how odd your interactions with Sans and his brother would be considered objectively. At this point, you’d mentally noted down every instance where you’d begun to act friendly towards the monsters and the mental list was ever growing.

Your life had taken a strange turn and you had been fighting it so far but what was the point in struggling? You still had hope that it would only be a matter of maybe days or maybe a week before you would be able to leave. Either because you misused Sans’ apparent trust and escaped or because he let you go out of the goodness of his heart, or soul, or whatever. 

“i'll take you into town tomorrow morning. but word of warning, don’t stir up trouble. some monsters are sensitive towards humans, especially those humans who work for the people killing our own.”

You nodded, a bit taken aback by his bluntness. It might be the late hour or the fact he’d just been waiting for you to break the silence for days.

“Do you feel that way toward me? Is that why you slaughtered my colleagues back at the research facility?” you dared to ask, always too curious for your own good.

“i don't have time for resentment. but if a human comes charging at us with deadly force, i'll strike to protect the ones i care about,” he answered with apparent honesty. 

“You didn't exactly answer any of my questions, Sans.”

“how i feel towards you? sorry i'll take that one with me to my grave.”

“You won't have a grave, you'll turn to dust,” you reminded him.

“in that case, you'll never know,” he said, smirking and winked at you.

You fell back into silence then, sipping your now cold tea. Half an hour later, Sans bid you goodnight with the salute before he walked up the stairs.

He kept his word. The following morning, Papyrus announced at breakfast that he’d head off for his weekly training lesson with Undyne. You felt unease for the younger skeleton but he seemed immensely excited, even if he sank down a bit when he remembered that meant you’d have to forego your baking adventures.

“that’s ok, pap. i’m taking doe into town today,” Sans mentioned casually like it wasn’t a big deal.

Papyrus quirked up one of his brow bones and then started clapping his hands excitedly. The movement looked slightly asymmetrical but you didn’t comment.

“YOU WILL ADORE NEW NEW HOME,” Papyrus exclaimed. “I'M SURE YOU FIND MORE MONSTERS TO BE NICE.”

“I do hope so,” you said honestly.

“OF COURSE NONE OF THEM WILL BE AS GREAT AS I. NYH HEH. I MIGHT BRING UNDYNE TO SEE YOU AFTER OUR SESSION.”

You flinched at the mention of her name. The memories you had of the fish monster from nearly three weeks ago were not pleasant. You remembered fangs and scaly hands closing around your throat.

“maybe not,” Sans intervened but it fell to deaf ear holes. Papyrus kept chatting along about how great Undyne was and how all of you would be friends. In the end, you’d never had the heart to tell him that his mentor and brother had threatened your life and physically harmed you. Sans would probably have interrupted before you could have said much anyway.

Time flew, like it always did with Papyrus chattering away and soon he was running around, gathering his training gear and then flying out the door.

“we’ll just go back before they finish, so you won’t have to see undyne.”

It was a small mercy but Sans’ words comforted you and the fact that he’d both noticed your discomfort and taken it into consideration was touching.

After cleaning up after breakfast and changing into the clothes you’d originally been captured in, you walked up to the front door, Sans right behind you. 

You looked back a final time before reaching out and turning the handle. You hadn’t been outside since that first night where you stargazed with Sans. 

He permitted you to open the door and the moment you did so, you spotted a couple of monsters gingerly strolling down the street hand in hand.

You took a deep breath of the fresh air and smiled instantly. The house was better than the hotel room but it still didn’t sit right with you to be cooped up like that. 

You took a few trying steps out into the road and it occurred to you that you hadn’t set any boundaries with Sans. What if you did something that pissed him off by mistake? 

"Er, Sans... do you... is it okay for me to just walk around like this?" you finally asked.

Sans looked amused at your question but answered seriously anyway, at least as serious as he could be. 

“i'm not your ball and chain. just don’t get into trouble or hurt any monsters. you could try running away but i’d hope by now you know that i can easily stop you. plainly, i’m just keeping an eye socket out for you.”

You nodded, even if the notion still puzzled you. 

The skeletons’ house was located on a fairly quiet street but you could still hear the buzz of life just a few streets over.

You walked ahead and heard Sans shuffle after you, close by but not so much that it felt suffocating. Turning into the Main Street of the monster town proved as a bit of a shock. You’d seen some of it when he moved you but that had been in the evening and right now it was bustling with monsters and people alike.

It reminded you of a busy shopping street near your hometown and the causal air of just enjoying a day out and about seemed palpable in the air. It felt so normal and not at all like wartime. This whole place felt like it lived in its own bubble and perhaps it did.

Glancing away from the town center, you could see the outlines of a tall wall. The monsters had boxed themselves in, in their little home with Mount Epps acting as part of the wall as well. You’d seen it from the outside on TV but whenever someone attempted to fly over it, they always got shot down before they made it far. 

A smallish yellow monster without arms came running past you almost tripping over its feet. Upon spotting Sans, the monster stopped and did a slight bow and smiled before jetting on its way.

“that's monster kid, though hardly a kid anymore,” Sans explained as he caught you staring after the small and quick monster.

You let your steps fall slower and then matched Sans’ walking pace, so you walked side by side. You might as well use this as the learning opportunity that it truly was. You were still bewildered that Sans talked so freely of his monster neighbors, even if he never gave away anything vital like attacks or HP levels. Yet, he willing answered your questions regarding every single monster you walked by. You edge to write it all down and considered if he’d allow you to go into the stationary shop you passed to buy a notebook. Only there was the small matter of not having any money on you. The monsters grabbed you and brought you without phone, wallet or anything other than the clothes on your back. 

You bit your tongue and instead concentrated on cataloguing the knowledge in your brain as best you could.

You noticed how monsters stared in your direction. Humans that walked around with them tended to keep their heads turned away but monsters blatantly gauged in your direction. There was a surprising amount of humans actually and the majority looked like they were just out casually and not enslaved like all the propaganda stated. The staring from monsters still made your skin crawl.

It took quite a while to figure out that it wasn’t you they were looking at, at least most of the time. It was Sans. 

The skeleton nodded politely or did a dismissive wave whenever someone tried to address him but you got the distinct feeling that he wasn’t comfortable strolling around in town despite everybody seemingly knowing his name. You were quietly thankful that he didn’t stop to talk to anyone. Some of the monsters still made your hairs stand on end and triggered the primal fear of anything stronger than yourself. 

Time seems to pass in the blink of an eye and you had gotten a unique sense of the infamous New New Home base that humans feared so much. Would they still fear it if they knew that behind the wall were just a normal town with monsters living seemingly just like humans did?

The rumors painted this place as the pinnacle of tactical defense with a center of magic to keep away all the attempts to go near it.

You came to a halt before a place called Topside Grillby’s for the second time in your stroll back and forth. A monster and young human man came pushing through the doors and the smell of fried food hit you like a truck. 

You’d managed to salvage and improve a lot of the pasta dishes Papyrus held so fondly but it was still ages since you got a good burger.

“stop drooling, kid. lets go inside,” Sans prompted and caught the door and held it open for you. 

You were baffled at the invitation but walked inside anyway. All chatter seemed to die down for a moment and almost all eyes in the place turned to you and Sans. Sans’ grin turned strained for a moment before a lot of people started either calling out his name with praise or scowling his way. A heavy thud fell that made silence settle anew.

Your eyes followed the source of the noise and you saw what looked like a man made purely of fire behind the bar. A moment later, the chatter was back and you and Sans was mostly ignored, at least if you didn’t count the stares, which had turned much more subtle.

Sans headed towards the bar and the man of fire and you followed.

“hey grills, thanks for that,” Sans said and the fire monster just nodded. “i'll take my usual and whatever she wants.”

You leaned forward on the desk and ordered your favorite burger. The bartender nodded and the waved towards the far corner of the bar.

Sans dropped another word of thanks and headed over to sit in an empty booth.

“Is that Grillby?” you asked. 

“one and only,” Sans answers and lounged back in the comfortable plush seats. You slid in opposite him.

“Mute like Frisk?” you felt compelled to ask, since he hadn't spoken a word to either of you.

“nah, he's just kind of a quiet fire instead of a roaring one. doesn't say much.”

You kept asking subtle questions about the other monster guests. You leaned forward to speak in hushed voices and startled suddenly when your burger was shoved onto the table. It was delivered by Grillby himself, which you found a bit strange considering you’d seen a human waiter running among the other tables. 

Sans’ usual turned out to be a small order of fries and a whole unopened ketchup bottle. He immediately smothered the fries in ketchup. Oddly, it was what you had come to expect from the skeleton so it didn’t seem that wrong. 

The burger was delicious as was the side of fries. It was some of the best food you’d ever tasted or maybe it was because it ran in contrast to stale sandwiches and later Papyrus’ cooking, which had been what you’d lived of for two and a half weeks.

You were halfway through your burger before you dared to ask the question that had been on your mind since you walked into town.

The booth was pretty isolated in its location but you lowered your voice again and leaned forward slightly.

“Sans, why do all the monsters either react like you saved their kitten from a tree or like you shit on their lawn?”

Sans grinned more than usual at the way you framed your question but all too quickly that evaporated and you were met with a stony expression.

“it's just politics, i guess. some blame me for asgore’s murder. some think i'll be the one to stop the war or at least help set things in motion.”

It didn’t sound one bit like regular politics, even if it was between monsters. It sounded horrible. Either he was the murder of the former monster king or he was part of the way to win the war against humans? You didn’t want any of those to be true.

You were about to open your mouth when you felt someone slide into the booth next to you. You tried to skit away but just ended up pressing your hip into the side of the booth, trapped.

To be fair, the monster who invaded your personal space didn’t look that threatening but you felt like you were allowed to be jumpy regardless. You were strolling around monster central as a monster-opposed human.

"what do you want, burgerpants?" Sans addressed the monster and leaned over the table with his entirely black eye sockets. He was pissed and gearing up to a fight but the pale orange monster didn’t seem to register that at all. 

“I had to come see for myself, hadn't I? People have been talking about the human living with you and Papyrus. Your brother talks quite highly of them and their cooking skill. But it would appear that it’s  _your_  human, not his. Never figured you for the type, Sans.”

It sounded like Sans growled and you pressed yourself more up against the wall as this Burgerpants character leaned closer to you. 

“I know a lot of us take to the humans. I’m not judging, my friend. I’m just observing. I like many other were under the impression you were looking to find Frisk and end this stupid war. Or is it a lie? Have you and Alphys even been working on that in the laboratory from the beginning of the war?"

Sans’ left eye flashed bright blue, which definitely caught Burgerpants’ attention. Immediately, the monster looked like he regretted opening his big mouth. 

His body got a blue shine and he was forcefully slid out of the booth and landed roughly on the floor. 

“i am looking for frisk and anything that goes on in the lab is way above your security clearance.”

“And what about her?” Burgerpants asked as he got up from the floor and pointed at you. “What purpose does shacking up with a pretty human have for the war?”

You still found Burgerpants rather unthreatening but his anger sounded real. He was mad at Sans for what he thought inactivity to find a way to solve things. You didn’t know why they were looking to Sans in the first place but it seemed he had accepted that responsibility.

You considered opening your mouth to defend Sans. You were a lead to locate Frisk, even if you were wildly uncooperative. Though Sans hadn’t tried to make you talk for a while but strangely, hadn’t his new approach worked much better? Again, you wondered if this whole thing was a big manipulative plot and you were falling for it. 

“none of your business, pal,” Sans replied. “and unless you want everyone to see how your skeleton looks like i suggest you move on. right. now.”

Burgerpants took the warning and skedaddled. You let out a breath you didn’t know that you’d been holding. It was odd to realize that some monsters knew about you, which supposedly made sense, as the skeleton brothers were quite famous among monsters. But it seemed most didn’t know that you possible had knowledge of where they took Frisk.

“Sans, how many people know why you’re really keeping me?” you asked Sans as soon as he looked calm again. 

“just me and undyne.”

“What? What about the dog monsters who guarded me?” you hissed because it seemed impossible that they at least didn’t know.

“nah. they often watch over new humans coming here. you weren’t special to them. if other monsters knew, they might interfere...”

You certainly didn’t like that sound of that but you needed to know and pressed Sans to go on. “Go on.”

“if they knew that you might have a lead on frisk,” he said in a whisper, “they might think torture is excusable.”

You were pretty sure that all color drained form your face. Torture. The thing you’d been so afraid of when the monsters took you. It was one of the horror stories about monsters. You’d been told that they used their magic to torture humans for information before killing them. 

You wanted to say something. Anything but nothing would come out of your mouth.

“don't worry. it’s an extreme measure some find excusable. it’s a last resort kind of thing.”

You painfully noted that he left no clue if he’d be willing for it to come to that. Perhaps Undyne would. After all she knew as well and she didn’t strike you like a patient person... well patient monster. Was there even a distinction to be made? It seemed like the two species were quite similar. 

You stared at Sans and held eye contact with the white pinpricks that acted as his pupils. They were familiar by now, bringing a sense of comfort to this place where it crawled with all sorts of monsters. 

Could it get to the point where he’d use his magic to rip your body limb from limb like he did in your nightmares?

 You knew it probably wasn’t wise to ask but you couldn’t stop yourself.

“Would it ever come to that? If I don't tell you, will you...”

Your voice trailed off and you didn’t know how to pick it up again. 

Sans looked down-beaten and hurt, if you weren’t mistaken. With a huff, he left his seat and declared that you were leaving. You rushed to follow him. Sans yelled to Grillby to put it on his tab before swinging open the doors and storming out. You narrowly missed getting hit in the face by said door.

Sans was already walking off, fast for his rather short legs and you jogged to keep up. Clearly, talking about the possibly of this - whatever it was - ending in torture wasn’t an acceptable topic. 

You heard Papyrus’ booming voice before you saw them. You instinctively looked towards the sound of the familiar voice and were greeted with a sight of Papyrus and Undyne chatting like best friends. 

Obviously, Undyne couldn’t see you but you still scrambled to duck out of sight before Papyrus spotted you. 

Sans saw the weird movement and upon realizing why, his frown disappeared.

“come. i know another way home,” he said and waved for you to follow him, which you gladly did. 

Sans was in your nightmares for sure but often Undyne was the one inflicting pain on you with her glowing spears. Sometimes, you woke up and it felt like you cold feel them slice through your soft skin. 

Only, this way seemed to take you by the big building, which Sans had pointed out to be the laboratory earlier. And there was a row of humans being guided towards it. 

The sight reminded you of photos from the time when people used to enslave other people. They were walking in a row, chained together with Dogamy at the front and Dogressa at the back. 

A little yellow dinosaur like monster in a lab coat was standing by the main doors to the laboratory. You froze as you watched the monsters herd the line of people towards the laboratory. 

Sans’ skeleton fingers closed around your elbow, much gentler than they ever had, but the touch was still unwelcome and you yanked free. In the back of your mind, you registered that Sans let you do so because he certainly had the physical power to hold you in place, if he wanted to.

There were five humans, all different from each other in age, gender and ethnicity. The sight made you sick and for the first time it seemed like the monster hating propaganda had been correct. 

A young man, the second in line, suddenly moved and the chains pooled around his feet. In a lunge, he was behind the small dinosaur monster, who looked utterly terrified. The human on the contrary looked full of rage as he was wrapping the loose chain around the dinosaur monster’s neck. 

“Undyne!” the monster used their last air to scream and that was what finally got you moving. It clicked in your head that this monster must be Alphys, Sans’ colleague and Undyne’s girlfriend. On your walk around town, you’d been sure to ask Sans about the monsters he knew personally and though hesitant initially, he had mentioned several of his friends.

The four other people had stopped and stayed quiet and still, even as the dog monsters abandoned them momentarily to focus on the human who had gotten lose. This was about to take a really bad turn. Someone was about to get hurt and you didn’t know if you were scared for the human or the monster more. Undyne would be here any moment, which made the hair on the back of your neck stand up, and with her arrival spears would start flying. 

You moved to interfere as if on instinct to prevent the disaster brewing. A breath later, you were in front of the human holding a petrified Alphys hostage. 

“Hey, you don’t want to do this,” you told the young man, your words coming out rough and desperate. “This will only end badly.”

He was clearly in over his head. He was surrounded by monsters and just Sans could incapacitate him with a wave of his hand. The man’s best bet was to let go of the loved one of one of the most terrifying monsters you’d met and pray that she wouldn’t have his head anyway.

“Monster sympathizer!” the man screamed at you and then the sound that haunted your nightmares hit the air.

It was Undyne’s battle cry that she used to locate people when her lack of eyes failed her.

The man’s face visibly paled and then things happened all at once.

Blue glow tore the man and Alphys apart. The chained humans finally started running away, rather unsuccessfully as they were still chained together. Undyne kept screaming loudly, her noises vibrating through the air. You stepped in front of the foolish man who thought it a good idea to hold a monster hostage to escape.

To be fair, that had been your initial plan as well, though you had chosen a monster with alleged teleportation skills. It hadn’t mattered in the end because there was no way you would have been able to dust him and as he’d seen that, there had been no reason for him to obey you.

Amongst the chaos you felt a sharp pain in your arm and you tumbled to the ground. This was it, you thought. You’d been stupid and foolish and tried to do the right thing by putting yourself in the line of fire. It had gotten you hit.

The screaming stopped but then concerned and familiar voices of the skeleton brothers could be heard instead. You had been stuck by one of Undyne's spears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry to end it on a cliffhanger! But it had to be done, the chapter was getting too long but I hope you enjoyed it anyway. And you got to meet Alphys a bit, though her proper introduction to the reader will come later (and have problems of its own). Did I make anyone worried for the health of the reader? 
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on the 1st of October! (How it is October soon? Like September just started...)


	9. A Healing Touch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The worst thing possibly had happened. Undyne had hurt her, even if it had seemed to be a mistake. While she tried to stay conscious, she was in for a surprise treatment from the skeleton brothers and a rather shocking revelation that had unforeseen dramatic consequences.

The world felt like it was swimming around you. You were squeezing your eyes painfully shut and trying to grab onto the hurt area on your arm with the opposite hand. Only someone was holding onto you and preventing you from doing much other than thrash around in pain on the ground.

“how could you just fire aimlessly like that?”

“I was only interesting in where Alphys was standing! And she was right in front of the bad human! What was she doing getting in the way? I was saving my girlfriend! That puny human shouldn’t have gotten in the way of that! Maybe it will even teach her a lesson about meddling and holding back information!”

You instantly recognized the voices of Sans and Undyne arguing but they sounded to be too far away to be the ones holding you in place. Unless Sans was using his magic.

“SANS, YOU SHOULD GET THE HUMAN HOME! SHE IS SERIOUSLY HURT,” Papyrus said, way too close to your ears as you felt the ground disappear underneath you and a vague feeling of floating overtook your being. When combined with the shocks of pain crawling up your arm, it made you nauseous. 

“we will talk about this later, undyne.”

It felt like you were moving through the air and a current was pulling you along. 

“Put me down,” you grumbled and tried to wiggle around. Surprisingly, you feet found solid surface again but almost buckled under you with the sudden weight change. Strong hands, warm and boney, clutched to both of your elbows and steadied you. 

“HUMAN, YOU SHOULD LET MY BROTHER CARRY YOU. HE IS USELESS FOR A LOT OF THINGS BUT BLUE MAGIC IS ONE OF THE ONLY THINGS HE'S GOOD AT,” Papyrus argued.

“don’t pressure her, pap,” Sans said, his voice loud in your ears, and he had to be standing so close. Your fuzzy mind registered that he had to be right behind you to have hold of both of your elbows like that. 

A part of you wanted to lean back and collapse against his sturdy body. However, you fought stubbornly to stay upright on your own. You could not let yourself be a damsel in distress, not with the monsters who kidnapped you in the first place. The pain in your arm hurt like hell and a quick glance confirmed that it looked bloody too, but it was a flesh wound located on the top part of your lower arm. The bone might have been broken and the wound would undoubtedly need stitches but it probably wasn't fatal and adrenaline did wonders at the moment to give you perceived strength. 

“I can walk,” you said through gridded teeth. You started walking, not looking at all where you were going and simply following behind Papyrus’ tall frame. Sans stayed close behind you, catching hold of you the few times you stumbled but he kept letting go as soon as you were stable again.

The short walk to the house felt like an eternity and you stumbled headfirst onto the sofa at earliest opportunity. Papyrus was fussing about, and if the rising pitch of his naturally loud voice was any indication, he was starting to panic. 

Sans, unsurprisingly, turned out to be the calmer of the two. 

“pap, why don’t you get to toriel and ask if she has baked any butterscotch pie recently?”

“OF COURSE! I WILL LEAVE PROMPTLY TO RETRIEVE TORIEL'S PIE!”

You heard more rustling about and more words exchanged between the brothers but paying attention was getting increasingly difficult. It felt like your arm was hovering at some point but it could have been your imagination. 

The front door slammed shut and you opened your eyes as the chatter died down. Sans was standing a few feet away, eying you cautiously as if you might snap any moment. The sight of him clearly trying it handle you with care and respect made you smile, even if it was slightly pained. 

“Did you seriously just send Papyrus out for pie or did my mind make that up?”

“i did. but it’s for a reason, trust me. how are you feeling?” he asked and stepped slightly closer.

You looked down at your arm, finding it tightly wrapped in a bandage, and you wondered how it happened.

“i didn't touch you,” Sans said and raised his hands defensively. “i just stopped the bleeding by err, moving the bandage to you.”

You tried not to think of how that probably meant that he’d moved the bandage on by using his magic. It was beyond interesting how his magic was agile enough to do something like that. You were slightly bummed out that you’d been on the verge of passing out when that happened.

“It needs to be cleaned and stitched up,” you choked out because the reality of the situation didn’t sit right with you at all. “I don't know about monsters but we humans can get infections and our flesh heals very slowly.”

The pain made your vision blurry, especially now that you were sitting down in a safe environment. Huh… when did you start to consider the skeleton brothers’ home a safe space?

“the pie will help you heal,” Sans said, like it was completely normal. It must be monster food or something.

It was another field of monster culture that people had started studying before humans and monsters became moral enemies and information sharing became a big no-no. Papyrus had mentioned sometime that you had been using magic ingredients while making food, thus creating monster food. It was supposedly safe for human consumption or at least you hadn’t been negatively affected by it. But pie?

“Okay... I’m not in a state of mind to ask how but I’d definitely like to know later. Do you have a first aid kit anywhere in this house? It will probably be in a white or red box and full with medical supplies. Or do you have some strong alcohol? It’s not ideal as a disinfectant but it’ll be good enough.”

Sans stared at you blankly. 

“we don’t have any of that. but i can probably clean and close it with green magic, if you’ll let me. it’s not my specialty but i learnt it to help heal pap whenever he got into trouble.”

Maybe the pain was making you feel brave or maybe the prospect of seeing green magic, the magic that could be used to heal and repair, used up close was just too tempting. You gave a nod and Sans looked surprised.

You had been scared of Sans using magic on you because it made you feel vulnerable and fragile. He was so powerful and he could completely take control of your body without your consent. However, he’d given you no real reason to suspect that he’d do that; in fact the opposite was true. But healing magic was the kind you had wanted to study because you wanted to use it to help people. 

It might be used to finally find a cure for numerous horrible diseases. It could probably be used to save lives. Still, you should be scared of agreeing to let a monster use his magic on you. It should have terrified you and the old mantras and lessons from summer camp came to mind but you promptly ignored all the warnings people had given you over the past four years.

“you’re certain?” Sans asked as he sat down on the edge of the sofa, close enough that you noticed that hum of power and magic coming off him. Or maybe you were imagining it.

With a shift and elegant move you wouldn’t normally attribute to the lazy skeleton, he was on his kneecaps beside the sofa, his sternum almost brushing against one of your knees, which you had drawn up under you.  He looked at you so openly and only proceeded to unwrap the bandage from your arm once you’d given him a nod. Again, you were startled by how gently he handled the task and made an obvious effort not to let his skeleton fingers brush against your skin.

The wound still looked bad but mostly because of the smattering of now dried blood. Sans’ brow bones drew together in concentration as he hovered his hands above the wound. 

The open cut was still bleeding a little bit but now all the blood got a vague green twinge, which intensified in color with each passing second. The pain dulled too and you watched mesmerized. 

The whole thing couldn’t have taken more than a minute and then Sans was lowering his hands. As he moved them away, the now bright green glow faded away and let you get a good look at the wound. 

Only it wasn't really a wound anymore.

It was a bright pink scar but it seemed properly closed and the dried blood has gone away with the green glow. The cut hat been deep, made with something extremely sharp, which left the scar long but slim. It looked like a wound that had just finished closing up. In time, it would probably heal to just a faint line on your skin. 

Your mouth had fallen open at some point and when you noticed, you slammed your jaw shut. The pain had come back as the green glow went away but it still wasn't as strong as before.

Sans sat back on his haunches, his skull covered in a slight sheen of sweat. It hadn’t seemed like much, because of the speed of it, but it has clearly taken a lot of effort. 

Healing magic was amazing. You wanted to ask so many scientific questions to try and find out how it worked and maybe how you could reproduce the effect in a laboratory. But now wasn’t the time for that, so instead you did something you never would have thought possible three weeks ago before Frisk has changed the course of your life. Well, you had thanked him for lending you his hoodie on that first night you stayed at the house but that was more a reflex than anything. This time you chose to say it.

“Thank you, Sans,” you said sincerely.

“no problem, doe.”

Sans got to his feet, knees cracking as he did so, and he took a space beside you on the sofa while you kept inspecting the scar on your arm. A couple of minutes ago it had been an open, angry wound and you’d been unable to move your fingers. Now you realized just how likely it was that the spear had severed your nerves but trying now, your fingertips moved, albeit the motion sent pain soaring up your arm.

“you might want to hold still,” Sans advised.

He was slouched back against the back of the sofa, the hoodie rumbling as to match his poor posture. He looked exhausted.

“Are you hurt now? Because you used Green Magic?” you asked tentatively.

He shook his head and made his usual grin wider, as if that would make it seem genuine. You’d learnt to tell the different between a real grin and a fake one days ago, but Sans didn’t know that.

“blue magic is my thing. green… is difficult. it responds best to kindness and it’s not my forte.”

“What is Blue associated with then?” you asked, letting your fingers hover over the scar, itching to touch it, even if you knew it was a bad idea.

“integrity.”

“Manipulating objects, actual psychokinesis is related to integrity? How?”

Sans just shrugged to your question and leaned his head backwards and closed his eye sockets, effectively shutting off the string of questioning wanting to escape your lips. All monster souls were white and they couldn’t persist after death, which humans souls could.

According to monsters, human souls took a color based on traits but the initial research, that had been started to allow human scientists to know about the extraordinary phenomenon, had been shut down when the war begun.

Suddenly, the door sprang open and a flushed Papyrus came tumbling through the door holding a piece of pie on a plate.

“DOE, I BRING YOU TORIEL’S FAMOUS BUTTER SCOTCH PIE!” Papyrus said and did a power pose in the doorway before rushing to your side. “SANS? WHY ARE YOU SLEEPING WHEN THE HUMAN NEED OUR HELP?”

You weren’t sure how Sans didn’t startle awake but he just mumbled something under his breath like his younger brother wasn’t screaming at him and then curled into a ball, seemingly still asleep.

“I WILL GET YOU A FORK,” Papyrus declared, handing you the plate before dishing to the kitchen and promptly coming back with the promised utensil.

You didn’t have any appetite whatsoever at the moment and reluctantly poked the piece of pie with the tip of your fork.

“Do I have to eat it?” you asked in a whisper, in consideration to the snoring monster next to you. Sans seemed soundly and confirmedly asleep for the first time since you’d stayed here. You should be thinking of how to use this as an escape attempt but he’d just healed your arm and you weren’t feeling like your legs would carry you very far after the adrenalin crash. And there would still be the task of tackling the gates or scaling the mountain.

“YES. IT IS MONSTER FOOD AND IT WILL RESTORE YOUR HEALTH. PLEASE EAT ALL OF IT. YOU ARE LUCKY. THAT WAS THE LAST PIECE SHE HAD LEFT.”

You pushed aside your nausea and quickly shoved a bite into your mouth. The relief was instantaneous and promptly caused you to devour the rest of the piece. You even considered licking the plate when you finished but held back.

“HOW ARE YOU FEELING?” Papyrus asked.

Worry was etched into his features and you recalled the conversation you’d had with Sans during your first night in the house. He’d accused you of being cruel because you acted like you and Papyrus were friends while you hated monsters. At the time, you weren’t sure his words had been true and after having been a houseguest, even an involuntary one, you knew for sure that they were untrue. But that concern on Papyrus face still hurt. You’d have to leave eventually – either by death or to go back to your people - and you’d never see the taller skeleton again. You’d never see the shorter skeleton again either and that particular after thought, sent an even deeper chill through you.

“Much better, Pap. Thank you so much,” you said. His smile widened and color rose to his cheekbones. “What?”

“YOU CALLED ME PAP. HUMANS ONLY CALL THEIR FRIENDS NICKNAMES. WE ARE OFFICIALLY FRIENDS!”

Papyrus looked like he might burst into tears or into song. You weren’t sure which would be worse.

So you got to your feet, which worked a lot better than they felt moments ago. Still, you reached out to stabilize yourself and caught hold of both of Papyrus’ covered hands. He froze and something unreadable flashed across his face but he held eye contact.

Was it the first time you’d touched him? No, surely you’d done so accidentally in all your kitchen endeavors.

“I’d be honored to be your friend, Papyrus. You’re an incredible person. But I need you to know that I can’t stay here forever,” you said and Papyrus opened his mouth as to argue but you pushed on and didn’t give him an opportunity to speak. “Sans wants me to tell him something but I can’t do that. He’ll either resort to making me tell him by force one day or I’ll be allowed to leave. Do you understand?”

You held your breath, waiting for Sans to spring awake and yell at you or freeze you in place but nothing happened. In fact, it still sounded like he snored slightly. Perhaps the use of Green Magic really had taken it out of him.

“BUT…”

“Shh!” you hissed, not looking for Papyrus’ loud voice to startle awake Sans. You finally got a chance to explain yourself to Papyrus, who you’d grown quite fond of. It might be your only chance and Sans might be faking sleep and you’d be thrown back into the hotel room or sent off to be tortured by Undyne but you had to say this. “That doesn’t mean that I wasn’t your friend, Pap. I am very thankful for getting to experience your friendship for this past week. I never thought I could even have one with a monster. I thought you were so different from us that it would be impossible but I was wrong. And you’re not like I’ve been told all of my life. You’re compassionate individuals. You and Sans helped me after I got hurt. You didn’t have to do that.”

“WE DID. SANS WOULD…”

“No, you didn’t have to. You chose to help me. You stitched me back up and made the pain go away. Humans have got it wrong about you guys and I’m so sorry for that. I might have lost mobility of my hand, if not for you two.”

Papyrus visible flinched and you stalled the words that just kept pouring out of you. The sensible thing would be to make a dash for it now. Even with the wall in place, it must have weak points, or you could head towards the mountain and climb all the way over it. If Frisk managed to get to the top as a child, then you should too. But something about the vulnerable expression on Papyrus’ face made you abandon all those thoughts, as ill advised as it was.

“WE ARE FRIENDS AND FRIENDS SHOULDN’T HAVE SECRETS,” Papyrus said very ceremoniously as he gently pulled his hands from yours and then fitted his left hand around his right wrist. To your surprise, he began twisting his whole hand around. You held back the quip of astonishment.

You’d gotten quite a few close looks at the skeleton brothers’ autonomy, more so Papyrus than Sans’. Magic tied their bones together so why was Papyrus twisting his hand around?

Suddenly, the glove separated from the wrist and showed the charred end of bones. He didn’t have a right hand, at least not anymore. Suddenly, all the odd maneuvering made sense. You recalled thinking he’d injured his hand somehow, probably after a run-in with humans but that the hand was entirely gone came as a surprise.

“EH… I ONLY HAVE ONE HAND,” Papyrus said and though his voice was still loud, it was pitched lower and his words came out hesitant rather than boasting.

The sight reminded you of a story you’d read in the Book of Legends you’d had at work and it stirred an idea but now wasn’t time for speculation. It was time for comforting a very vulnerable-looking Papyrus.

You didn’t even think before leaning forward and wrapping your arms around the skeleton’s body. He felt hard to embrace, especially because you squeezed him tight, as if the embrace would reinstall the confidence you come to expect from Papyrus.

The skeleton monster let out a sound caught between a giggle and a hiccup but carefully one arm came around your shoulders and gave you an extremely gently squeeze back. You should have been terrified to be caught in the clutches of a monster with his hands on you but you weren’t even a bit concerned by that.

You were the one that pulled back first and Papyrus lifted his arm immediately.

“Humans?” you asked carefully.

“the bomb,” came the answer from the sofa.

You flinched at the cold edge in Sans’ voice. So he’d definitely been awake for some if not all the conversation. You were officially screwed. You should have known better than to speak in front of him.

“SANS, YOU ARE FINALLY AWAKE. HOW RUDE TO LAZY AROUND WHEN OUR GUEST WAS RECOVERING! ALSO… IT’S OKAY. I KNOW YOU TOLD ME NOT TO TELL ANYONE BUT SHE IS A FRIEND AND I…”

“okay,” Sans bit out. His eye sockets were empty and his brow bones drawn tightly together. He looked downright terrifying and the way his fingers were digging into the sofa, threatening to rip the upholstery didn’t bode well.

“SANS, IT’S REALLY…”

“papyrus. go stay with undyne tonight.”

“BUT BROTHER I AM COOKING THAT NEW PASTA RECIPE WE FOUND TONIGHT AND…”

“just… for me, okay, pap? just go,” Sans said. He was only talking to Papyrus but he kept staring at you. You felt very small and didn’t dare to move. You might not have been able to if Sans was using his powers but you didn’t want to find out.

“FINE! BUT I AM OKAY, SANS. I WANTED HER TO KNOW. SHE IS A _FRIEND_ ,” Papyrus said and heavily emphasized the last word and looked straight at Sans, who finally met his brother’s eyes.

The younger brother was out the door a moment later, though he lingered in the door frame and shot you a smile before gently closing it.

Sans slouched back into the sofa from where he’d sprung up.

“you’re not trapped. you can move,” he muttered and rubbed his fingers over the top of his skull and squeezed his eye sockets closed.

Taking a hesitant step away from the skeleton, you found that he’d been correct. You weren’t entirely sure why he was freaking out like this. He was a generally laid-back guy but you knew when it came to the people he cared about and especially Papyrus, he always got weirdly serious.

“Are you mad because Papyrus showed me his lack of hand? Sans, you must realize that I don’t care…”

“don’t think i don’t know what you’ve been doing all this time. gathering data. cataloging in your head. i see your observant eye. pap shouldn’t reveal his weakness to other monsters or humans, especially not ones like you.”

The accusation hurt more than you thought it would. Sans actually thought you’d use this data, if you ever got away, as a tactical advantage against them. Admittedly, that would be the smart call. But you were more interested in the science and stopping the war now that you’d seen how the other side lived. The humans in charge were lying to everybody. It was wrong. The monsters were killers and scary yes, but to at least some degree the stories had been exaggerated and you didn’t know how much yet. And furthermore, you would never have given up any information that Papyrus had revealed as a sign of friendship. Just the thought made your stomach turn.

“I would never do that to him,” you said. “I know I’m just a human and that we’re at war but don’t you know me better than that by now? You think I’d actually do anything to hurt the adorable and innocent younger brother of yours? I would never betray his trust like that!”

Sans got to his feet and stalked towards you with a predatory look in his eyes. You stumbled back; surprised that he wasn’t keeping you in place.

“what have you done to make me believe that i can trust you?” Sans asked, glaring at you with black and empty eye sockets.

His words stung, mostly because you understood where he was coming from. You’d been playing with your cards close to your chest. But you always tried to do the right thing. When Sans reassured you that he wouldn’t hurt you, you’d chosen to trust his words. When Papyrus had showed you that monster and humans could be friends against all odds, you’d stopped fighting and let it happen because you trusted it to be okay. Without thinking too much about it, you’d trusted the two of them and Sans not extending the same trust to you hurt.

“I guess you can’t then. What are you going to do? Go to your last extreme measure, huh? You’re going to torture me until I have no choice but to reveal what I may or may not know about Frisk’s whereabouts? Or are you going to hand that honor off to Undyne? She’s certainly seem happy to inflict pain!” you screamed, as Sans was still advancing towards you.

Your back hit the wall and primal fear overtook your senses. You thought you’d stopped being scared of Sans but apparently not.

However, Sans seemed to notice your change in behavior and stopped promptly a good distance away from you. He was glancing down at the floor and looked deep in thought.

“it was a mistake bringing you here. i’m taking you out of here tomorrow. eat, sleep, whatever. leave if you want your chances with the wall. i won’t stop you. by tomorrow, i’ll make sure that you’re out of our lives.”

With that he disappeared into thin air and left you feeling like he’d just knocked the wind out of you, even if he had just used his words and not his powers. He was letting you go, supposedly without harm, which was what you’d wanted in the first place.

So why did you suddenly feel so motivated to stay?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uhhh! What did you think? Now the tables have turned! Did any of you predict what Papyrus' injury would be? And what do you think of Sans' reaction to his brother spilling so vital information to the reader? And she's free to leave, but then things have changed for her over the past week, so perhaps escaping isn't at the forefront of her mind anymore. I must confess I really like how this chapter turned out, I'm always a sucker for comfort and also I finally got to write Sans using magic in front of the reader in a non-destructive way. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this chapter. 
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday the 8th of October.


	10. A New Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She was free to leave but she had a different goal in mind now. After Papyrus had revealed his injury, she knew that she would do everything in her power to help him. Papyrus had called her a friend and she was determined to prove him right, even if she had to convince Sans first.

It dawned on you some time in the AM. You’d settled on some dry crackers for dinner and made just a single cup of tea.

It had all happened so fast that you hadn’t made note of it before. You had found routines and settled into them after just a week. You had gotten used to the two skeleton monsters’ company. They had truly felt like your friends, even Sans who had patiently answered your monster questions or cracked you up with the shitty puns. You’d planned ahead for cakes and pasta dishes with Papyrus, which would now never be made, unless the monster made them by himself after you left.

You had let them become familiar. You hadn’t had even the vague resembling of a family since your family died. Your family had barely just moved you to the place that would be your home when the accident had happened. It had left you alone and far away from any family and friends you did have. You ended up in the foster system until the tender age of 17 where war had broken loose and people couldn’t care less about a runaway kid. You’d been isolating yourself, burying yourself in schoolwork and excelling at it, which got you on the path to university. It had been a coping mechanism that allowed you a reasonable excuse to keep a distance to people. You were busy with your studies, and you made sure to be so.

Sans and Papyrus had gotten under your skin impossibly fast. Probably because you had been with them around the clock for the last week, so everything had felt more intense and sped up.

But the revelation that truly surprised you wasn’t that you’d gotten familiar with the two skeleton monsters. It was how it made you feel when you looked back on everything with this newfound knowledge.

You liked the two of them, even Sans with his murderous history, which was a whole can of worms to tackle for another day.

And now you’d be leaving them. You’d decided to wait ‘til morning for Sans to escort you and you had no doubt that he would, because apparently you knew him well enough to tell when he was being serious.

After reaching any of the human government centers, you’d be debriefed and asked to report everything you’d experienced. They’d probably adore all extensive knowledge you had of the different monsters residing in New New Home. They’d probably dismiss anything nice you said about the monsters as Stockholm Syndrome or mind manipulation. They’d probably force you to reveal all that you knew, including the stuff about Papyrus’ hand or Undyne’s blindness.

Sans had been right, of course. Monsters shouldn’t trust you with their weaknesses. You worked for the other side and any information you found out wasn’t yours to keep quiet, even if you wanted it to be.

The night seemed endlessly long without having Sans to chat to. You missed him already, even if you knew he was just upstairs in his bedroom. You’d tried the front door out of curiosity and the doorknob had turned easily in your palm and the door had swung open obediently. You’d closed it again.

Deciding to be at least a bit productive, you rummaged through the drawers until you found a block of paper and a pen. When Papyrus had told you of his hand, your mind had immediately recalled one of the stories from the Book of Legends. They were all short stories, seemingly fairytales all featuring monsters, but after the reveal of actual monsters the seemingly fictional stories had you intrigued.

You hadn’t had time to pour through all of it as you painfully had read the curved scrawl that adorned the pages. It was handwritten and difficult to read and it wasn’t like you’d had a lot of time between all the paperwork you had to do for your more experienced colleagues. But you’d made it through a couple of the stories and one focused on a monster who had lost his leg.

The description of the monster had been vague but there was a sketch on one of the pages, depicting it as a big burly monster, looking vaguely like a bear standing on it’s hind legs but the sketch was faded like the pages so you couldn’t be sure, even less now trying to recall it from memory.

But the main story had stuck with you. A human had accidentally stumbled into the home of the amputee monster, who promptly launched to attack the intruder. It was the same human who featured in all the other short stories that you’d made it through. The human managed to bargain for their safety by promising to bring back the monster’s leg. The monster didn’t believe the human one bit but the human was a scientist and knew about monsters and magic. They were able to extract pure energy from the monster’s bone marrow, and injecting it into a mold of the monsters’ leg brought functionality into the limb. It wasn’t the monster’s real leg but it worked like an extension anyway and the monster and the scientist had parted as friends. You recalled some weird scribbles, like equations alongside the margin of the text. It had seemed like an actual equation for calculating the amount of magic needed to fill the mold but you’d dismissed that as absurd.

But perhaps it wasn’t. You knew the book wasn’t fairytales but you still had thought they were mostly fiction, a fun book of tales from the time where humans and monsters lived in harmony, but that didn’t explain the equation.

If it wasn’t a fictional story but a real one… could it be the answer to help Papyrus? Was it possible to create a new hand out of the skeleton’s own magic? Your head was spinning with all these thoughts and how to explain your theory to Sans. Would he even give you the time of day to explain yourself?

You couldn’t have slept for more than a couple of hours when you awoke by being pulled off the sofa and your tailbone painfully making contact with the floor. You glanced up to see Sans standing at the top of the stairs, left hand still out from the motion that had undoubtedly rudely awakened you. You scrambled to your feet but Sans didn’t look mad, he merely looked indifferent.

“Morning,” you tried.

He just offered you a nod. “you ready?”

“No,” you said and had the satisfaction of seeing surprise on his face. “I want to talk to you about something.”

“let me get this right…” he said and started walking down the stairs slowly. “you literally take every opportunity to remind me that you’re here against your will and now that i want to let you go… you don’t want to?”

You shook your head. “No, I’m very glad that you don’t intend to keep me here against my will anymore or torture me for whatever information you think I have. Trust me. I am. But I can’t leave like this, Sans. This past week has reminded me of something I forgot was even possible. Your brother reminded me of how it felt like to have actual friendship. And whether you wanted to or not, you reminded me how it felt to have someone look out for you.”

Sans looked utterly confused and reached up to scratch his skull. “doe… after what happened… undyne is done waiting. i popped over there earlier. she’s pissed. if you stay, i can’t promise anything.”

A chill ran down your spine. However, Sans was a reasonable monster, right? Maybe Undyne was too and you’d be able to see that, if the mere mention of her name didn’t make you only see a bright glowing spear headed straight for your heart.

“Okay, thanks for the warning,” you said as levelheaded as you could. “But I actually want to talk about Papyrus. His hand specifically.”

Sans growled, deep from within his skeleton, and it made you tense. “no.”

“I know, I know, Sans, but it’s not what you think. I thought about this old story that I read. I thought it was a fictional tale at first but it’s about a monster that loses his leg and a scientist that almost gets his head ripped off for disturbing said monster. But then the scientist promises to get the monster their leg back and the scientist manages by extracting the monster’s own magic and putting it into a leg mold that then begins to act just like a real leg would!”

“wait… where did you read this?”

“This old book I found, shortly before I got swiped away to here,” you said and hesitated for a beat. You purposely hadn’t told anyone about the book because you thought it might be very important but you needed to tell Sans. He might even be able to confirm your suspicions. “It’s handwritten, leather-bound and very old. There are mostly odd markings on the front cover but the title is in English. Book of Legends.”

Sans’ eye sockets widened with recognition. “the symbols… are they like circles, triangles, squares and depictions of hands?”

“Yeah, I think so. Why? Do you know the book? It was thought to be a book of fairytales originally. I stumbled by it coincidentally and was able to buy it from a kid who had access to a huge library of old valuable books. But times are tough and he could easily be bought and as the reality of monsters were known, I thought it was a good place to start with my research… why are you looking at me like that?”

Sans looked lost deep in thought.

“i have heard of the book from someone. it was referenced in research he did. that book is ancient, from one of the first humans who sought out to befriend the monsters. the scientist supposedly wrote down the stories in several books. he wrote a lot and they were part of the reason humans grew scared of monsters in the end and decided to seal us underground.”

“Oh…”

“you haven’t read any monster hating parts?”

“No, but to be fair I haven’t gotten through all of it. The scientist’s handwriting is appalling.”

“might be one of the early volumes. supposedly those are before things turned sour.”

“But they’re built on reality then? What’s told in them is something that actually happened? So if the scientist managed to make a fully functioning leg, who is to say that someone can’t make a fully functioning hand? It’s a lot smaller than a leg anyway. Though I would probably struggle with how to create a mold that could be complex enough to have all the tiny joints…”

“you want to help papyrus?” Sans asked but you were too deep in thought to even think about answering him.

“But I’m sure I’ll think of something… wait! One of your attacks are bones, right? You make like glowing bones and throw them at people, right? I read about that in your very limited file and…” you realized what you were saying, revealing that you had access to monster files, which required a very high clearance level. Maybe Sans didn’t know that. And it wasn’t like you actually had the clearance; your boss just picked ridiculously obvious passcodes. Like who choses the birthday and name of their first-born child as a high security clearance password?

“my attacks include bones, yes,” Sans said and purposely chose not to ask about the files even if you could see that he wanted to. He must be restraining himself.

“Can you make one? Right now?” You requested.

Letting out a tired sigh, Sans complied and suddenly a light blue bone was floating mid air. It looked like a femur but slightly too artificial and straight. Something seemed to detach inside of your ribcage but you were too focused to pay attention to it.

“Can I touch it?” you asked, watching the vibrant color mesmerized.

Sans was looking at you with that gaze where it seemed he looked right through you.

“it’ll hurt you. you have to stand still if blue attacks are heading your way. you never learnt that?”

You shook your head. “Okay but then if I keep still and you move the bone to me, I’ll be fine, right? Can you do that then? Please?” you tacked on the please because you were beyond fascinated that you’d actually gotten Sans to call out his attacks, without the intent of hurting you. Otherwise, you could probably have made him show you much earlier.

The bone floated your way and as it went through your hand, everything summed and tingled but the sensation left as soon as the bone made it all the way though. He’d been right; it hadn’t hurt one bit when you’d kept completely still.

“Can you make it into different bones? Say a lot of different bones, as in a complete hand worth of bones?” you asked.

Sans perked up and made the blue bone disappear.

“it would be difficult but if it’s for pap, i can do anything.”

“Great because then that can act as the mold. Then we’ll just need a syringe strong enough to go into his bone… and the book to make the calculations,” you said the last part hesitantly because that would probably be the most difficult part.

“the book that was at your home or desk which have now surely been raided by the human government? that book?”

“Actually, it’s hidden in the ladies room at my workplace and the cleaner is terrible. I bet you it’s still there. But it would still include the drive there and me sneaking in to get it. I can’t really let anyone see me, or they might wonder where the heck I’ve been for nearly three weeks. But knowing protocol, it’s probably still covered in crime scene tape and out of use. So I might be able to stroll right in and grab it.”

“why?”

Sans’ question caught you so off guard that you started stuttering.

“W-what? What do you mean? Why do I want to retrieve the book? Frankly, I don’t want to accidentally draw too much magic out or something. Or did you mean why an… untrustworthy human such as myself would want to help at all? Because the answer to that question should be obvious to you, Sans. Papyrus is my friend. If I can do anything to help him I will, regardless if we’re from a different species. After this, I’ll go on my merry way, okay? I hope that offer doesn’t get retracted?”

“it will stand from now ‘til you leave us, doe. at least i won’t stop you.”

“Good, then we just need to get a car and drive back to the research center. It took a couple of hours, right? If I remember correctly we had some study syringes at the labs, which will be perfect. I doubt people will have removed them. The most important things will have been the research. We have plenty of equipment other places.”

“you sure sound like you know a lot for an intern,” Sans commented and you realized you’d forgotten to be wary of your words again.

Maybe the reason he had been inclined to let you go was because he didn’t really think that you knew anything. And every time you opened your mouth now, you proved how unlikely that was. It was disturbing how difficult it was to keep up pretend now. For the first ten days in the hotel, you had been adamant with every sentence shot at him and you’d stuck to the carefully crafted lie: you didn’t know Frisk’s whereabouts – you didn’t have the faintest clue.

“Well, no. I don’t. I just talk a big game,” you lied and even you could tell how bad a lie that was. Thankfully, Sans didn’t call you out on it. “I didn’t see any cars around town at all. Do you have them stored somewhere?”

Had it only been 24 hours since you’d gone to town with Sans, pissed him off at Grillby’s, gotten yourself shot by Undyne and then subsequently healed by Sans’ Green Magic and Toriel’s pie courtesy of Papyrus? Your thumb when to trace along the brand new scar, which already seemed faded to look like it had been there for weeks rather than a day.

“are you okay?” Sans asked with his eye sockets tainted on your arm.

“Yeah,” you nodded but you still felt baffled how that was true.

Magic and monster food did wonders physically but you were unsure how you felt about the trauma of actually staring down a glowing spear just like you’d done for weeks on end in your nightmares. You’d collapsed from exhaustion and only gotten a couple of hours after you finished pacing around and recalled Book of Legends story.

“we don’t have to take a car to the research facility. i know a shortcut,” Sans said and you knew he was talking about his magical shortcuts. The ones where he disappeared into thin air only to reappear somewhere else.

“Even over that large distances?” you asked, amazed.

“if i’ve been there before, yeah. it’ll only take a second. but breakfast first,” Sans concluded after looking you over. You probably looked terrible with huge bags under your eyes and your clothes still smattered in dried blood from yesterday. You hadn’t even thought to shower. Oddly, the Green Magic had made you feel clean.

You took a quick shower and changed while Sans whipped up scrambled eggs and took only a small portion for himself, which he then smothered in ketchup as per usual.

“What about Papyrus?” you asked after swallowing your third mouthful.

“we tell him if we have everything and if you still think that it’ll work. i told undyne to send him to check on toriel this morning and she will not let him leave before lunchtime knowing her. she misses someone to baby, even if frisk is hardly a baby anymore or were when they first met.”

You could hear form the tenderness in Sans’ tone that this was a sensitive subject but it had been so long since you’d talked about Frisk. You usually did you best to avoid it whenever the teenager came up in conversation. But things were different now, or at least they felt different and you dared to ask.

“Is Toriel like their mother?”

“in a way, yes. toriel lost her child and adoptive child in one night and every other human that fell into the underground after that. she just wanted to protect everyone, even if she didn’t always go about it the best way. frisk didn’t have parents, at least not anyone worthy of speaking of, so they needed someone like toriel, just like she needed someone like frisk. someone who wouldn’t break but stay determined for the long haul. she’s the reason i didn’t kill frisk on sight.”

You’d heard a lot of the Monster Queen but it was nothing like the picture that Sans painted of her. He made her sound so kind, if a little misguided. He talked about her as if she was just someone who longed to look after the young and fragile. It didn’t quite match up with the evil mastermind moniker that the human war propaganda had given her.

“So Toriel stopped you from hunting Frisk and you stopped Papyrus, right? They were a lucky kid down there.”

“a special, extremely determined kid, for sure.”

Silence settled between you and you found that you wanted to break it with another apology that you couldn’t tell Sans any clues. It would be giving up the location of a hidden military base that you shouldn’t even be aware of in the first place. You’d seen the monsters at work. They were ruthless if humans charged at them and the humans guarding those places would.

You finished breakfast and while washing up the dishes, you tried to calm your stomach. If it could save you a couple of hours of driving each way, a magical short cut would be worth it. You were equally nervous and excited at the prospect. Would it even be safe for a human to go through whatever hole Sans punched in the time space continuum?

“you ready?”

You wiped down your hands and walked over to where he stood in the middle of the living room, a spot you’d seen him disappear out of many times. Stopping just in front of him, you nodded.

“er… you’re going to have to hold on pretty tight. moving myself is easy but it’s more complicated if someone is there with me,” he extended out his right hand, palm turned upwards and you saw all the fine details of his bones.

You were staring but Sans didn’t comment, so he probably realized where your mind went. Sans would have to replicate something like this. Every joint seemed close to touching but not quite there and yet they moved as if something did connect them. Magic was so damn fascinating. You wondered if Sans would let you study his hands when you’d hopefully finished making a new one for Papyrus.

“Right, sorry,” you said and snapped out of it and thrust your hand forward quickly as to make up for the delay. Your hands knocked together and Sans closed his skeleton fingers around your hand.

You felt the warmth where his bones where squeezing into your hand. And there was the same hum of energy as when he’d made the glowing bone pass through your fingers. It was obviously his magic but to think that it was manifesting so obviously and reacting to touch was beyond interesting. You closed your hand around Sans’ and found it surprisingly sturdy from being just bones. The weight of his hand in yours felt comforting. You were gripping onto him almost painfully tight but better to be safe than sorry. Plus, the slightly painful grip made it feel less like you were on a first date and holding hands.

“maybe hold your breath for a moment?” Sans suggested and you breathed in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry to cut it off there but it was getting long and their trip to the research facility deserves its own chapter. And the reader is about to experience being taken along on a shortcut! I hope you liked this chapter and especially how the way they engage with each other is changing now that the reader is free to go. And did anyone predict that the book mentioned in the first chapter would come back to play a part? 
> 
> Additionally, this story just surpassed 1,000 hits, which is exciting! Thank you to everyone who've read it so far.
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday the 15th of October 2017.


	11. A Strange Excursion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She weren't sure how to feel about the fact that she was helping a monster break into the research facility where she once worked. She was voluntarily helping the monsters now and she was still not sure if it was the right alliance to form but she might finally get some answers.

“you can open your eyes now,” Sans said.

You weren’t sure when you’d closed them. In fact, you’d tried your best not to do that since you’d wanted to commit to memory whatever scientific insight you might have gained from actually being teleported by one of the world’s strongest monsters.

You opened your eyes to find Sans standing in front of you, a little too close for comfort, and you became aware of the weight still in your right hand. You tried to stumble backwards, but something or rather Sans’ magic, caught you in place, even if he did pull back his hand.

For a split second, you wondered if Sans would snap now that you were out here and far away from Papyrus.

“guard,” Sans whispered and indicated above your shoulder.

You found that you could now move and turned around discreetly. The familiar research building looked almost foreign now. Had it really only been weeks since your biggest problem had been your colleagues disregarding your worth?

Perhaps, the reason it looked odd was that everything was dark inside of the building and the front door looking worse for wear, permanently pried open. You looked from the door back to Sans, who just shrugged.

“can’t look for frisk without breaking a few doors,” he said nonchalantly.

It wouldn’t be as easy just to stroll right inside. Sans had been right about the guard, who was posted next to the damaged front door. The guard wore a POCAM uniform and the sight made you remember the three men who’d escorted Frisk.

You had no doubt that they’d moved all research from the facility by now and probably the expensive equipment as well, so you weren’t entirely sure what the guard was guarding. But the sight of him worried you.

“Come on,” you added in a whisper. “We’ll take the back entrance.”

Sans looked skeptical but he followed you regardless. You walked around the entire building, eventually daring to go close to the back entrance. Your boss had been talking about how he always entered through it to avoid the “media” at the front door. The research facility only had media outside of it very occasionally and it really had never been a problem moving through them without much trouble.

But your boss Professor Jeffords, well your former boss since he was likely either dead or gone, had liked to make himself seem more important than he was and he’d been allowed entrance through the backdoor by security after he kicked up a big fuss.

And you knew his passcode. Once he’d held a presentation, in-house, and when he needed to log on to the projector he wrote his passcode in the username field and thus revealed it to everyone who paid attention. You’d remembered it ever since, just in case it would come in handy.

Still, you were worried that the code might have been revoked after the attack. With baited breath, you put in into the keypad and the door clicked open. You breathed out in relief.

“you had no idea whether that would work, did you?” Sans asked, sounding somewhere between impressed and worried.

“I put the chances of it working at like 30-40%, which was good enough for me. Now move your bones. Wait, couldn’t you just have dropped us inside of the building instead?”

“what would be the fun in that?” Sans grinned and kept moving, even as you had stopped. Shaking your head in wonder, you moved to catch up with him. Clearly, there was a lot of things you still didn’t know about Sans.

The door lead into a back hallway on the ground floor and you were oddly thankful you didn’t have to go into the reception area where the attack had taken place. You’d heard gunfire and the swooshing sound of magic and seen human bodies crumble to the ground and felt Undyne’s scaly fingers nearly ending your life.

The memory was a staggering reminder of what the monsters were capable of and you felt a sinking feeling in your stomach. You were in cahoots with the monsters now, leading a monster into a research facility, which likely had been emptied but still.

“what?” Sans asked beside you and you hadn’t realized that you’d frozen where you stood.

“Sans,” you said in a hushed voice as you fought to keep the tremble from it, “when we’ve done this for Papyrus, you have to tell me what went down here. If you truly want me to believe all that you keep alluding to, you have to actually tell me your side of the story.”

You chanced a glimpse at his skull, which looked deep in thought and then he was grinning like he usually did, even if it was a masked grin.

“and then you’ll tell me where frisk is?”

You caught your lower lip between your teeth as you pondered it. Now wasn’t really the place for this discussion but it had been a long time coming.

“I can’t promise that. But I will listen to your side of the story because I fear it will be very different from what I’ve heard.”

“fine. but first we help papyrus,” Sans said and then waved his hand to indicate that we needed to keep moving.

You nodded and then kept moving forward down the hall until you reached an elevator. Sans walked right in and you rode it up to the first floor. The ladies’ bathroom was just around the corner from there. Sans waltzed right in and muttered something about humans being weird for gendering toilet facilities.

You felt along under the sink, muttering, “come on” under your breath as your hand searched. After what seemed like a lifetime, your fingers brushed a book and you pulled it free from the tape that secured it there.

You were endlessly thankful that you’d thought to put it back the night Frisk had been brought here. You’d shoved all the unfinished paperwork into your drawers as you had a sinking suspension that you would be fired promptly the next morning. However, the book was special to you and you’d been hiding it in the bathroom all week due to suspicion that your colleagues were rummaging through your drawers when you weren’t there. You didn’t want them to get the hand on the book you’d managed to track down.

You didn’t particularly want to hand it over to Sans either, your mind warning you that he could just blink and disappear with it leaving you here. The fact that leaving you behind would also mean that you’d be free of monsters didn’t matter much to you at that exact moment. You weren’t done with this and you needed to help Papyrus and you wanted to know what Sans had to say about the attack and the war. So you had to trust him, at least try to.

“Here,” you said and handed him the book.

He definitely recognized it, stroking his skeleton fingers along the spine of the book with great care.

“this is one of the copies of the first volume of the books of legend. those signs you were talking about,” Sans said and pointed to the weird symbols on the front page, “i know someone who wrote like that. but it’s not the author of these books. the symbols on this one spell out dreemurr. it’s the volumes of how one human met several monsters, most noticeable the boss monster who was an ancestor to asgore.”

“What?” you hissed. It was a lot of things to process at once, so you said the first stupid thing that came to mind. “How is it a copy? It’s handwritten!”

“it only appears as such because it has been duplicated from the original. humans have technology and we have magic.”

Again, this was not the place for such discussions. You’d have to talk about it later. If you stuck around for too long you might be caught here and that wouldn’t do you any good.

“We need to go to the top floor next, there we might find a syringe strong enough to help us. Hold onto that book for me, okay, Sans?”

It pained you to have it handed off to him, when you weren’t sure if you’d ever get it back and its history had just turned that much more interesting. Sans seemed to sense it somehow and nodded and promised to look after it.

A short elevator ride later and using your boss’ code for the laboratories, you managed to track down the biggest syringe in the place. All big equipment was predictably gone but everything else was still stocked where it had been from before. You felt an itch to explore, see if you could use any of the chemicals or small equipment but if too much was gone it would be noticeable when they finally went through the place. One missing syringe probably wouldn’t raise eyebrows.

The two of you had just walked out of the laboratory the elevator down the hall dinged. You froze and watched in horror as a man in a POCAM uniform stepped out of the elevator. He wasn’t the same from outside but he looked right at you. His eyes widened in surprise as he went for his gun.

But his movement froze and not voluntarily if the bulging vein in his forehead and the rage in his eyes had anything to do with it.

You turned back to look at Sans who held out his left hand and his white pinpricks had gone away but now the black hollow of his left eye socket contained a brilliant blue glow instead.

“Monster scum!” the guard yelled. “The only thing worse is the foolish humans who sympathize with y-!”

Suddenly, his voice ceased up and Sans’ eye seemed to glow a little brighter.

You felt caught in the crossfire again, just like you had been with Undyne, Alphys and the shackled human. Only, it felt worse this time and you wondered if a spear slicing through your arm had been a merciful ending to that situation.

Your fingers instantly went the scar on your arm, now faded even more and not too noticeable though it should still be a gaping wound. Sans had gone out of his way to care for you and put you back together but he looked menacing now and on the threshold of taking yet another human life.

“Sans,” you said, your voice coming out softer than you thought it ever would when addressing a supposedly scary monster. “Let go. Don’t kill him.”

Sans looked utterly confused but diverted his focus away from the guard in his clutches and focused entirely on you.

“you think…” Sans started to say and then outright laughed, which just left you baffled. “we don’t _just_ kill people. we only kill when we have no other choice. ”

The sound of something heavy falling to the floor made you turn back towards the guard, who crumbled to the grown like a ragdoll.

“Sans!” you shouted in protest and felt your heart in your throat. He had just said that he wouldn’t kill him!

“he’s fine. just unconscious.”

You didn’t feel too trusting towards Sans at the moment but you didn’t feel like getting up close and person to check the formerly raging guard’s pulse. However, you stepped a little closer and could see the steady rise and fall of his chest, as if he was sleeping and not dead.

“But…”

“per protocol, he should be asked if he wants to surrender. in that case, we’d arrange for him to get transported back to the underground to teach him our history but we don’t have proper transportation, so we’ll have to leave him. and we have to go before his friend comes looking for him. ready for a shortcut?” Sans said and held out his left hand while he had the book tugged under his right arm.

Your grip on the syringe almost failed you. You didn’t really want to go away with Sans when he’d just raised so many questions within you. What was this talk of protocol and no killing? It made absolutely no sense to you.

He’d threatened your life before, hadn’t he? It had certainly felt like Undyne was ready to murder you. And you’d seen all the bodies during the attack crumble to the floor. But it had looked suspiciously like the way the guard had just dropped, hadn’t it?

Sans extended his arm a little further and gave you would could only be described as a timid smile.

“i’ll explain later. i promise.”

Taking a deep breath, you took Sans’ hand and hoped that this would all make sense soon.

In the blink of an eye, you were back in the skeleton brothers’ home. You had closed your eyes instinctively again and it was odd to open them to see everything around you had changed. One moment, you were in the white hallway with an unconscious guard just a few feet away and now you were back in what felt like the familiar living room of two monsters.

“Sans, I have so many questions.”

“how do you think i feel? i’ve been trying to ask you things since you got here,” Sans joked and there was an easy and light teasing in his voice as if you were just old buddies kidding around and he hadn’t just said something to make you question everything you thought you knew for certain.

“Sans,” you said sternly.

The skeleton sighed, placed the book on the coffee table before collapsing onto the sofa. His rubbed his fingers over his brow bone and suddenly looked very tired.

“i’ve tried to tell you that monsters aren’t bad,” he muttered.

“Yeah, implicitly, saying ominous things like: you don’t know the truth or our side of the story or whatever. And yes, you promised that you wouldn’t hurt me but you know why I was still scared? Because I was pretty sure I saw you and your buddies slaughter my colleagues!”

“we didn’t kill anyone there. we took a few back with us and left the rest unconscious on the floor. we’re a peaceful species, doe.”

“But the threats of violence? The sounds of people dying?” you asked.

“angry humans don’t tend to understand word of reason. and for the sounds, that was just people struggling and failing to fight back.”

You had been so sure. It had been the main reason you’d held onto as to why to resent Sans and Undyne, even if the former of them had proven quite difficult to remain adamant about. And it had been a lie.

“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” you asked.

How much would have changed? Would you have gone willingly? Would you have escaped the nightmares that plagued your sleep?

“you never asked. i assumed you wanted to stay true to your beliefs.”

“I… I never wanted that, Sans. I’m a scientist, or at least trying to be. I pride myself on having an open mind and allowing myself to see things from a different kind of view given the right data. I have always wanted to understand monsters but all information I could get hold of painted a portrayal of you that I now know isn’t true but I thought it was before.”

You sat down on the sofa right next to him, your body turned toward him and your knee knocked into his. You didn’t flinch or feel a jolt a fear like you had done in the beginning.

“humans are stubborn. mostly you just choose to believe something whether it’s right or not,” Sans commented.

A lot of people chose to believe in things they didn’t know for sure and yes some held onto them too tightly. But you also believed that the majority of people wanted to do what was right and if they were shown all the facts, they would not support something hurtful. They would want to do the right thing.

“Sans, you have to tell me what has happened between humans and monsters. The government never did give out the details very freely. But all I know is that we, the humans, decided to declare war on monsters after a bomb went off at the official meeting between human world leaders and monster representatives. The details are confidential but humans have a tendency to be scared of what is different from ourselves, so it probably wasn’t much of a push to decide to try and gain power over a magical species that suddenly emerged.”

Sans had let his eye sockets fall shut but now he opened them, and turned around on the sofa as to almost face you. Your knees knocked together again.

“it was our idea to have that meeting. frisk’s idea to be specific. they wanted every country in the world to acknowledge and accept us. toriel and myself were skeptical about it but frisk was so sure they’d be able to bridge the gap between the human world they’d grown up in and the monster family they’d found underground. a bomb was smuggled into the negotiations, which were about monster rights by the way. i know the human media told you that it was the monsters that planted it but we didn’t.”

You took a moment to consider Sans’ words. Little Frisk, not yet a teenager at this point, had managed to rally several world leaders and representatives into a room to talk to monsters about giving them rights. It was insane what that kid was capable of. And Sans was right, it had been written everywhere that monsters had planned to kill world leaders to take charge over the world. They had made it seem plausible.

They had painted the monsters as either vengeful because humans were the ones who trapped them in there in the first place, or just acting on their urges to dominate. Sans weren’t offering any substance other than his word as to why they hadn’t done it but you had promised yourself that you would hear him out.

“So humans planted it? But why, Sans?”

“they didn’t want us to have rights, i suppose. those humans in that room were inclined to accept monsters into society but it would hardly happen after they all nearly died. and we lost asgore, the king of monsters. our queen…<”

Sans hesitated and you knew there had to be more history between him and Toriel that he hadn’t gone into yet. Whenever he brought up the goat monster, his tone changed slightly. He cleared his throat and continued.

“humans don’t know this but she was comatose… for over three years,” he said, and you just barely managed to catch the gasp, which wanted to escape. “her magic barely hung on. it was a miracle she didn’t die. undyne lost her vision in her one eye from the explosion and papyrus lost his hand. i should never have let him come along but he wanted to help. i grabbed frisk on instinct and they remained unharmed but… everything got blamed on us, even though the bomb was placed under asgore’s seat.”

That had definitely not been mentioned in the media. But it made sense, as Asgore had been the only casualty. You had not known about Toriel. Everyone thought the queen of monsters were just working form the shadows. She must only have woken up fairly recently. But you wondered why Sans had grabbed Frisk and not Papyrus. It might be insensitive to ask, if he thought you implied that he didn’t love his brother more than the human ambassador.

But Frisk did sound like family to him and it made you want to share what you thought you might know about their location. In the back of your mind, you wondered if this was some very elaborate manipulation game that Sans had been running from day one but that wouldn’t be possible. There were too many variables.

“I understand why Frisk was so worried about Toriel now,” you said in a low voice. They had been asking about her when you met them.

“i know. toriel is the mother frisk never had. i knew the damage would be severe if i fled with frisk but… i thought they could turn back the clock and reset what had happened. you might have noticed that my magic allows me to manipulate space through shortcuts and gravity. humans used to have magic too and frisk still has it to a degree. they can manipulate time. they can reset time, to create different timelines. they can take us back if a mistake happens. i thought they could do it after the attack but something happened to them after we exited the underground or maybe just after the explosion. they can’t do it anymore.”

It sounded too surreal but you had just gone through a portal to a location hundred of miles away. To many, magic might seem like something, for a lack of a better word, magical and fictional and limitless but you thought of it as a new branch of science. It was something you hadn’t known about before but that didn’t mean that it hadn’t been there all along. It would have rules and limits like everything else and it only seemed magical because you didn’t know any of that yet. And Frisk had surely seemed like a special person.

“So that’s why you saved them. You thought you could go back to before everyone got hurt. You wanted to reset time and go back to before that meeting happened to prevent it. But, Sans, messing with time like that… it can’t be a good thing.”

“it is what it is,” Sans said and suddenly sounded very angry. “are you still going to help papyrus with his hand or not?”

Your heart sunk a bit at how the open and soft side of Sans was shut down so quickly. He was commanding his angry menacing voice now and it was probably intended to scare you. But still, he didn’t imply that you _had_ to help Papyrus. He was still giving you a choice, at least somewhat.

You had touched a nerve with your line of questioning and you knew when it was time to table a discussion before it went too far.

“Of course, I am, Sans. I said I would help him and I fully intend to stick to that. I can’t promise that it will work but I will promise to do my very best.”

Sans’ features softened a little when you smiled so assured at him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what did you think? Had any of you picked up on the hints sprinkled through out or the way the initial attack scene was written? Now, the reader finally knows what the heck went down in the research facility. She still has a lot more questions but at least she now knows that Sans and the other monsters aren't cold-blooded killers. And she traveled through a shortcut with Sans as well! I hope you liked this chapter. 
> 
> Furthermore, I would like to wish one of my readers [@fujoshifangirl2003](https://archiveofourown.org/users/fujoshifangirl2003) a happy birthday. I hope you have/had a wonderful day!
> 
> Next update will be up in a week, on Sunday the 22nd of October 2017.


	12. A Hostile Monster

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Making calculations to help Papyrus hadn't been easy at all and when Sans suggested getting a second opinion from Alphys, she had easily agreed. However, she couldn't have foreseen the welcome she would get from the small monster.

Even with the calculations in the Book of Legends, it isn’t as easy as you wanted it to be. It isn’t just a snap of your fingers and voila Papyrus has a working hand again, almost as good as his own.

It wasn’t something you and Sans had previous results to compare to. While the book was non-fiction according to Sans, it didn’t properly explain every little scientific detail like you would have preferred. This was about Papyrus, someone you’d grown to care for and you couldn’t screw this up.

Papyrus returned that evening and he practically lit up when he saw that you were still here. In fact, he gasped loudly and ran straight over to where you was sat and pulled you into a bone-crushing hug that nearly knocked the air form your lungs. You should have been scared to be so close to a monster but it didn’t feel scary with Papyrus.

“careful with the human, bro,” Sans reminded his brother.

“I AM JUST SO HAPPY TO SEE YOU, MY DEAR FRIEND. I FEARED THAT SANS HAD SENT YOU ON YOUR WAY. HE ISN’T TOO CLEVER SOMETIMES. HE WORRIES TOO MUCH. OHH, WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH THAT BOOK?”

You hesitated. “Just reading it. It was something I forgot at home before I came here to stay. Sans helped me get it.”

“SURPRISING TO SEE THAT YOU DO HAVE MANNERS, BROTHER. WELL, I’M DEFINITELY MAKING CELEBATORY PASTA FOR THIS GLORIOUS DEVELOPMENT! SO GOOD TO SEE THAT YOU’RE STILL HERE.”

You smiled as Papyrus fussed about and ran to the kitchen only to find you were missing pasta. How that was possible you had no idea, since you seemed to cook pasta in some form every single night.

“I WILL BE RIGHT BACK. DO NOT MOVE, HUMAN.”

The door shut behind Papyrus.

“thanks for not telling him, doe. i don’t want him to get his hopes up if we can’t do it,” Sans said and he had that soft tone in his voice that he only got when he talked about Papyrus. Sans love for his brother seemed absolutely endless and it created an ache in your chest. When was the last time you’d cared so much for anyone or anyone had cared for you like that?

“No problem, Sans. I don’t want to hurt him in any way,” you said and sent a pointed glance Sans way. That had been exactly what you’d been fighting about before. “I just want to help.”

You kept writing out hypotheses and adjusting the calculations to Papyrus’ height, weight, age, HP and magical affinities, which Sans all knew by heart. Papyrus returned and you only packed away the book when you were called for dinner, which seemed normal and yet foreign at the same time.

You’d gotten used to having dinner with the skeleton brothers but things had changed since the last time you’d sat down together. Sans had told you that you were free to leave now. Granted, you hadn’t actually tried since that first night so the promise hadn’t been properly tested but you chose to trust that he had meant what he said. That meant that you were just dining with two monsters out of your free will. You’d come far in just a month’s time.

“TORIEL IS LOOKING SO MUCH BETTER AT THE MOMENT, SANS. SHE ASKED FOR YOU. WHEN DID YOU LAST VISIT HER?”

“eh, it’s been a while, i suppose,” Sans said and took another bite of the pasta that he’d smothered in ketchup as per usual.

“OH, AND DOE, I TOLD TORIEL MANY THANKS FOR THE PIE ON YOUR BEHALF. SHE WAS MORE THAN HAPPY TO HELP AND SHE WOULD LIKE TO MEET YOU SOON.”

“papyrus, that might not be a good idea.”

“OF COURSE IT IS. TORIEL LOVES HUMANS, I’M SURE SHE’D LOVE DOE TOO.”

“we’ll talk about it later,” Sans said and effectively shut his brother down.

You decided not to get in the middle of it. If Sans didn’t think that it was a good idea for you to meet the literal queen of monsters you weren’t going to object. She’d been painted as somewhat crazed and human-obsessed by the media and while you knew you couldn’t really trust anything that they said, it still made you want to be cautious.

And if she really felt like Frisk’s mother then she probably wouldn’t take so lightly to you being tightlipped about their possible whereabouts.

You wanted to get back to studying but pushed it back to spend the evening with Papyrus. You watched FRIENDS and played board games until Papyrus eventually retired to his room with a big happy smile on his skull.

You pulled out the book again and Sans set about making tea for the two of you, which you gratefully took a sip of between polishing the plan. You felt confident that it might work but you knew so little of how magic acted that you were wary of engaging with it.

When your eyes were burning and you were as done as you would get without any more outside help. Sans had kept you company and offered little ideas whenever you stared hopelessly at your work. He was frankly quite clever and had a very scientific approach himself.

“That’s it. My brain can’t do any better than that at the moment. But I’m too wired to sleep,” you said as you got up and stretched out your back. You had a horrible habit of slouching when you got too focused on the thing you were working on.

“would star gazing help?” Sans offered and you spun around to face him.

He was leaning against the kitchen counters and the sight of it was so familiar that it felt like a punch in the gut. You were no longer afraid of his skeleton appearance and for most parts you trusted that he wouldn’t hurt you.

“It might actually. You don’t mind?”

“i meant what i said earlier. you’re free to go. anytime. i won’t keep you against your will… anymore.”

You huffed out an almost silent laugh at that as the front door swung open thanks to Sans’ magic. He followed you around to the garden and you automatically drifted towards the little hill.

You lay down on your backs like you did your very first night in the skeleton brothers’ home. So much had changed since then.

Sans raised his arm and pointed to the sky asking about one of the constellations. You told him the name but your eyes weren’t looking at the sky. They were staring at his raised arm and followed it as he slowly pulled it back.

“Can I see that?” you asked before your moment of courage evaporated. You’d wanted to examine his bones from the moment you’d met him. You would never have thought that he might allow it but so many things had changed and you had an excuse this time, sort of, if needed.

“it’s just bones,” he said and lifted his arm again.

You sat up and scooted a little closer, though he stayed on his back, carefully watching you with his white pinpricks.

“It’s bones held together by magic, Sans. I told you I’ve always found monsters fascinating. And I’m about to attempt to make a replica of Papyrus’ hand, so it wouldn’t hurt to study one up close.”

“i’m sure pap wouldn’t mind,” Sans muttered.

“I’m asking you, Sans.”

He huffed, seemingly caught somewhere between annoyance and anxiousness, as he moved his left hand towards you.

“I can’t hurt you, right?” you asked as you carefully held his skeleton hand with both of your hands.

“nah, i’m not that fragile. it takes some force to fracture these bones. i crack jokes, not bones, daily.”

You let out a soft snort and turned his hand over in yours. He let his head fall back and closed his eye sockets and you traced your pointer finger from the tip of his down the middle of his hand.

He suddenly jerked and you worried you’d somehow hurt him but he didn’t look hurt, he looked sheepish.

“ticklish,” he explained, with a wide and genuinely happy grin.

You felt slightly flustered as you muttered out an apology. Sans just shook his head to ward it off and closed his eye sockets again.

The warmth of his bones shouldn’t surprise you anymore but it still did. You could practically feel the life and magic humming from within them. His hand also seemed lighter than you’d have thought. It rested effortlessly in your hand as you tried to locate how all the little joints fit together.

Sans would be the one creating the replica that you’d fill with bone marrow from Papyrus but you still liked knowing what to look for in terms of mistakes Sans might accidentally create. You wanted Papyrus to have a fully functional hand again.

He’d just been at that fateful meeting four years ago because he’d wanted to help. And Sans had prioritized saving Frisk over saving his brother because he’d thought he could turn back time. That whole concept still seemed unfathomable to your brain but you knew it meant he blamed himself entirely for Papyrus’ injury.

You weren’t sure when you’d stopped studying his hand but at some point you must have let your hands drop, because you were now sat with your hands and Sans’ left one in your lap.

“doe… i think maybe we should go see my colleague alphys tomorrow,” Sans said and jolted your thoughts back to the present moment. “she might be able to help.”

You recalled the little dinosaur monster that was Undyne’s girlfriend. You’d only seen her briefly and then you been rushed away to nurse your injury. Secretly, you were a bit scared of anyone, who would voluntarily chose to date intimidating Undyne but Sans had proven a lot less frightening and menacing the more you got to know him and perhaps it was the same with the rest of them.

“Sure. If you think Alphys can help. I wanted you too look over my calculations anyway. The more eyes the merrier. I’m happy to accept any help, who might make this a better thing for Papyrus.”

“good… and she’s a bit of a character. but i’ll look out for you,” Sans said and you felt his phalanges close around your hand for the briefest of moments.

You didn’t even want to question his words or the little reassuring action because your mind was thoroughly trashed after such a long day. It didn’t take long before you walked back into the house and you crashed hard on the sofa.

It was only at noon the next day, after a nice breakfast with Papyrus, that you understood what Sans had meant about Alphys.

You were walking over to the laboratory, which was guarded by a pair of royal guards. You couldn’t tell if it was the same ones that had been part of the attack on the research facility but they just seemed indifferent and cold towards you.

On the short walk through town, you’d seen more humans around than before and you got a little smile on your face over the fact that the humans and monsters could live in harmony.

However, as you walked through the gates to the laboratory you remembered the shackled humans.

“Wait, Sans?” you said and pulled him to a halt. It was too easy to just put your hand on his shoulder, a gentle touch between people that knew each other well. “What about the shackled humans I saw escorted in here? Why were they tied up if humans aren’t prisoners here?”

Sans looked slightly crestfallen. “they aren’t prisoners but if they surrender and continuously try to attack us, we take precautions. especially if they’re coming to see alphys to get their injuries treated. she’s… not very fond of humans.”

If you hadn’t already stopped in your tracks, you might have done it again. The empty reception area of the laboratory suddenly seemed very scary and unwelcome.

“She doesn’t like humans and you’re taking me to see her?” you hissed.

Sans opened his mouth about to answer when someone called his name.

At platform several stories up, a tiny yellow dinosaur peeked over the railing and down at the town of you.

“Sans, wh-what is that? Why are you b-bringing a human in here? A-and unshackled!” Alphys hissed, and sounded caught between fear and anger. That was no good combination.

Sans moved his hand to close around the underside of your arm and in the blink of an eye you were standing face to face with Alphys, who scurried back from the two of you.

“You know my g-guidelines, Sans. N-no unshackled humans up h-here. They are nothing more than tr-trouble! You either shackle her immediately or g-get out of my laboratory,” Alphys said and held out some weird white circles connected. They looked nothing like normal chain shackles but you had no interest of getting into them.

“we’re here to ask for your help concerning pap. doe is a friend, alphys. just like frisk,” Sans said and he didn’t make a move to take the offered handcuffs.

Alphys scoffed and you could see her contempt for you. It hurt to have someone look at you with so much hatred. She didn’t know you; she simply resented you for being who you were. You couldn’t help but draw parallels how some humans did that to other humans based on race or sexuality, even to this day. Or how most humans looked at captured monsters or spoke about them on television.

This was one of the ways you’d imagined monsters reacting to humans; pure hatred for your kind.

“Frisk is nothing m-more than trouble. They should have n-never gotten us up h-here. Humans haven’t changed from when they c-condemned us back then. They spin their l-lies and t-turn everyone against us. They just want us d-dead.”

“alph, you’re being unreasonable and…”

“Two days ago, Sans. I was a-attacked but a human I had promised to help with his d-diabetes. How is that f-fair?”

Sans was just staring at Alphys at this point and you didn’t like your odds of this staring contest.

“Leave, Sans, and get that f-filthy human away f-from me.”

“we are here asking for your expertise, alphys. we’re here to help pap with his hand. doe has a book of legends.”

Alphys tried and failed to hide her interest in that. You pulled out the book from under your arm and showed it to her.

“Her in h-handcuffs or she l-leaves,” Alphys said firmly.

“i can’t do that,” Sans argued and shot you worried glance.

This was getting ridiculous. You didn’t want to submit yourself to the traps of monsters but you needed to be here and hear what Alphys thought about your plan. Sans had spoken highly of her scientific accomplishments.

“Fine,” you said and moved forward to snatch the weird handcuffs. As you moved forward, Alphys darted backwards dropping the handcuffs. She seemed legitimately terrified of you.

Granted, you’d seen the human who’d threatened her life but you had a feeling her fear must run much deeper than that one encounter. Sans had been present and Undyne just a shout away, so Alphys couldn’t have been that frightened.

“doe, you don’t have to,” Sans insisted when you handed him the cuffs.

“Apparently, I do,” you said and now your voice trembled slightly. Sans had promised that you were free to go and that he wasn’t holding you against your will but willingly getting your hands locked together by something that might be magical wasn’t objectively a good idea anyhow.

“Sans, just do it, if it makes Alphys more comfortable,” you said and looked to the dinosaur monster, who looked like she was trying to eavesdrop without going to near you. You lowered your voice. “Just promise to take them off again.”

“promise.”

The magical handcuff clicked on easily and they were surprisingly comfortable, more like bracelets than handcuffs.

You opened your mouth to ask if Alphys was satisfied but no sound came out. Panicked, you tried to speak more but found that your voice was entirely gone. You felt like you might start hyperventilating.

“alphys!” Sans scolded and his pinpricks disappeared as he shot the other monster a deadly glare. “you muted her!”

“It’s only while the c-cuffs are on. When did you become so attached to the h-human who stands in the way of us f-finding Frisk and f-fixing this whole mistake?”

You and Sans exchanged worried glances. Alphys wasn’t supposed to know that.

“Oh, don’t lo-look at me like that. Of c-course, Undyne told me. What do you t-take her for? And she let you handle the h-human because you two seemed to connect better but I see it might even be m-more than that. Have you gone s-soft for the human, Sans?”

“no,” Sans said angrily and without any hesitation at all while he clenched his jaw. “but i won’t approve of torture and no other methods have worked.”

“Like you’ve even tried. According to P-Papyrus, she’s just your new r-roommate and friend. You shouldn’t let your b-brother befriend _humans_. We all saw how that worked out l-last time.”

Suddenly, Sans was moving forward and Alphys’ body had a vague blue glow as she was being pressed against the railing, close to being tipped over.

“S-sensitive about humans now, are we?”

“frisk is family and doe is helping us. why do you insist on hating them?”

“Because they ruined everything, Sans!” Alphys shouted and Sans stepped back. “They trapped us underground! Then Chara came along and all was good but then not at all. And the other fallen humans created problems as well and Frisk was the worst of all because they had magic to manipulate us even further. They made us believe in a better world where humans and monsters could work together but they were wrong. Not even a year before our king was assassinated and they declared war on us! Why do you refuse to see that, Sans?” Alphys finished, her voice void of her usual stutter while she was shouting.

“but humans are…”

“Humans are h-horrible beings, Sans! You should k-know better than most. You’ve seen different ver-versions of Frisk who you love so dearly, isn’t it t-true? They t-trapped us back then and they want to do it again. We s-shouldn’t let them treat us like that.”

You felt helpless just watching the exchange and it was unsettling to hear the despair in Alphys’ voice. Because of the way you’d been raised and the information you’d had shoved in your face, you hadn’t ever considered how monsters could be scared of _you_.

You felt helpless and small compared to monsters able to do magic but you did outnumber them in epic proportions and this was your turf. Alphys had seen her girlfriend permanently blinded and her king assassinated.

You started trying to sign, which was horribly difficult with your hands restricted but you repeated the same three signs over and over until you caught both of their attention.

Help.

Friends.

Harmony.

Alphys laughed somewhat hysterically when she saw you frantically trying to communicate. Sans mellowed out, however, and the blue glow disappeared around Alphys.

“we just want your help,” Sans repeated and walked over to you and reached out for the copy of your calculations. “it might get pap his hand back. if you insist on hating humans, i can’t stop you but please take a look at these for my brother. he didn’t ask for any of this.”

“N-neither did I, Sans,” Alphys said but took the papers Sans held out to her. “I-I just want to go back to a t-time before I felt fear every time I laid eyes upon a h-human. There was a time when I loved them. I don’t want to h-hate them but I fear them, so h-hating them helps me cope. You c-can’t take that away f-from me.”

You wanted so desperately to talk to Alphys and explain yourself but you physically couldn’t and even if Sans removed the handcuffs, you doubted that Alphys would listen to what you had to say.

You tried signing again.

Thank you.

Friend.

Alphys eyed you cautiously but she looked more confused than scared.

“Will she ever tell you where F-Frisk is, Sans?” Alphys asked almost tentatively.

Sans looked at you and you couldn’t read his expression. You’d gotten quite good at reading his animated skull but this expression was a new one.

“i don’t know but it’s her choice, alphys. i won’t make her. we’ll leave to give you time to go over the calculations. thank you for your help.”

“Do you really trust a h-human near the core of your brother’s m-magic? A human with a history of working for the g-government at war with us?” Alphys asked as she quickly glanced over the paperwork.

Sans hesitated. “i do.”

He caught hold of your arm and teleported you outside of the doors of the laboratory.

“let me see your hands,” he requested and you held up your cuffed hands. Blue magic enveloped them and a moment later they broke into a lot of small pieces, freeing your hands.

“Sans, she…”

Sans held up a hand to stop you. “she’s been through a lot. excuse her hatred.”

“But-“

“doe, I don’t want to talk about it. please?” Sans said and you started walking.

You held your tongue reluctantly. You weren’t sure Sans knew what you wanted to say. You actually didn’t blame Alphys because you could see things from her point of view. Her words had stung and hurt but they had been true to her experience.

In the evening, the doorbell rang and Papyrus hurried to open it. He always wanted to be the one to open doors for guests and since Sans didn’t get up more than what was necessary, it worked out quite well.

“UNDYNE! WHAT A PLEASURE TO SEE YOU!” Papyrus said and you peaked out from the kitchen where you were making yet another pasta meal with Papyrus.

Sans even got up from the sofa.

Undyne looked less terrifying than you remembered. She was smiling, albeit somewhat awkwardly, and seemed very different from the person who had sliced up your arm in a fury of anger, even if it had been by accident.

“Hi Papyrus, you’re not slacking on your form. All this pasta will make you chubby!” Undyne teased and you just watched the heartfelt banter between the two of them, who were clearly good friends.

The fact that a skeleton probably couldn’t get chubby made it even more innocent and harmless.

“undyne, what brings you here? come to rattle my bones after we went to see alphys?” Sans asked and slouched forward, hands in the pockets of his hoodie.

You’d noticed that he slouched quite a lot as if his nonchalant posture could hide how he was constantly paying attention.

“No, I would have liked a heads up but bringing a human in front of her at her current state was your own mistake. You know she’s not been herself for a while.”

“it’s been years. she shouldn’t hold onto hate like that,” Sans countered.

“ALPHYS?” Papyrus asked. “BUT SHE ISN’T. SHE LOVED HUMANS WHEN WE LIVED UNDERGROUND AND SHE SO DESPERATELY WANTED TO BECOME FRIENDS WITH FRISK. I’M SURE YOU’RE MISTAKEN, BROTHER.”

Papyrus’ innocence was showing again and you wondered how little his brother told him of all the horrible things that were going on. You knew it came from a place of wanting to protect him but Sans couldn’t shield him from the world forever.

“Anyhow, I’m actually here on Alphys’ behalf. She wanted you to have these,” she said and walked past Sans to hand over the papers directly to you. Your breath caught in your throat but you pulled out your hand and took them from the fish monster.

“Papyrus, Sans, would you mind if I talk to Doe under four eyes? Well, under her two eyes but you know what I mean.”

You were so caught off guard by the joke that you just nodded and didn’t even consider that you were agreeing to being alone with a monster, who might share more the opinion of her girlfriend than Sans.

Undyne and Sans didn’t seem to see eye to eye a lot of the time.

“undyne,” Sans practically growled.

“Don’t worry, bone boy. No tricks. Just a friendly chat,” she promised and even crossed her heart.

“SANS, LET’S GO. UNDYNE AND DOE COULD BECOME BEST FRIENDS. WE NEED MORE OF THOSE BAGS OF SPICES THAT YOU AND DOE KEEP USING ANYWAY,” Papyrus said and took his brother by the arm.

Sans looked back at you, his white pinpricks gone from his eyes, but he looked more lost than angry in the rest of his expression.

You mouthed a quick “I’ll be fine” and you hoped desperately those words would be true. You hadn’t been alone with a monster that wasn’t Sans or Papyrus before and Undyne still frightened you. But you’d been judging her before and you knew they didn’t actually hurt humans, you hoped.

“Alphys read it?” you asked and glanced over your notes to find little additions and tricks of approval dotted throughout. It seemed she hadn’t just looked; she’d improved it.

“Yeah, she totally geeked out over your science. She was quite impressed, I think. Actually, I wanted to apologize to you, punk. I didn’t mean to hit you with my spear but in the heat of battle, I have to amplify my echo by yelling and I saw red then because I knew Alphys was caught in it. And I knew she’d be terrified to have a human so near her.”

You weren’t sure what you’d expected when Undyne wanted to talk to you alone but an apology hadn’t been it. You thought she still secretly wanted to torture you for information. The lines between everything had blurred now but you still had to be cautious.

“Thanks, Undyne, but I knew you didn’t mean to hurt me, as odd as that sounds. However… the first time we met? When you almost strangled me?”

Undyne turned bashful and fidgeted with her hands. “I got a little carried away. You saw right through my defenses and my… blindness. I felt exposed and angry. I’m still not sure what to make of you to be fair. I can see how you care for the skeleton brothers and in my mind that doesn’t match with someone standing in the way of us reuniting our family.”

You supposed that she was right. And that was the exact reason everything felt so complicated now. You still wanted to protect human intel but… monsters weren’t the bad guys they had been made out to be and you were almost certain Frisk had been taken against their will.

“I see your point,” you said and let out a dry chuckle. “And Undyne? Alphys seemed so scared of me but yet; she looked at my work and helped us out with Papyrus. Why?”

“It isn’t my story to tell. But let’s just say that everyone in our family lost something in that bombing that started a war. Mine and Papyrus’ losses are more obvious and our king and queen got the worst of it. But Alphys and Sans lost things too… compassion, hope, the ability to view the world the same way as before. We all took a critical hit.”

“And she still helped me?”

“She loves the skeleton bros a whole lot. Sans was her best friend at one point and Papyrus is like her little brother. She would do anything to help him, even though she’s hesitant to face the reality that a human could help him. But we all know Sans wouldn’t let anyone he doesn’t completely trust near his beloved baby brother.”

It was a lot to process. You hadn’t dwelled too much on how much trust Sans actually put into you by allowing you to do this. It made you feel oddly warm.

“I better get going before they come back. I guess leaving you unattended isn’t a problem. Alphys seemed adamant that Sans told you that you’re free to go?” Undyne half-stated, half-asked.

You froze for a bit. Technically, both Sans and Undyne had kidnapped you and they both knew that you likely knew more than you’d told them. Sans might have promised that you could walk away but he hadn’t promised on Undyne’s behalf. The same Undyne who’d seemed ready to engage in torture to get you to talk.

“Sans and I don’t agree on a lot of things. This is no exception but… I’m going to trust him on this one. Goodbye, Doe. Maybe we’ll see each other again,” Undyne said and did a legitimate bow before exiting through the front door and leaving you alone in the place that had become your temporary home.

It was true then. Even with Alphys who demanded you cuffed and Undyne who was less than pleased about it, you were still free to go. It seemed like a miracle.

However, you had no intention of leaving at the moment. First, you needed to get Papyrus back his hand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked this chapter! I'm so happy to finally properly introduce Alphys to the story. Remember how I said that most of the monsters lost something during the bombing? That's the same thing that Undyne was talking about to our dear reader. Emotional scars can hurt just as much as physical ones. Let me know what you thought of everything?
> 
> Next update will be in a week on Sunday the 29th of October 2017.


	13. A Scientific Endeavour

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was time to try to see if her calculations would work and she could truly help Papyrus. Furthermore she knew the amount of trust Sans had placed in her to allow her so close to his beloved brother's magic. She could not screw this up.

“YOU THINK THIS CAN GET ME BACK MY HAND?” Papyrus asked and stared at the you and Sans in wonder. He was holding onto the glove in place of his right hand with his left hand.

“we think so, yeah, paps,” Sans said and his voice was practically swimming with emotion. “it could really work.”

“BUT HOW SANS? YOU TRIED BEFORE AND IT DIDN’T…”

“it’s doe’s plan with help from a book of legends,” Sans replied.

“BOOK OF LEGENDS? MAY I SEE?” Papyrus asked and you handed over the old leather bound book. “ASGORE USED TO TALK ABOUT BOOKS LIKE THIS BUT HOW COULD THAT GET MY HAND BACK?”

“Pap, you know I was somewhere before I came here, right?” you said. Neither of you really had gotten around to telling Papyrus that Sans had originally kidnapped you. “I was a scientist in learning there and I think I can use these calculations to regenerate your hand in a way. I’ll have to use both Sans’ magic and some of your bone marrow or should I say the magic from within your bones. We really think it can work.”

You never thought you’d see a monster cry but big wet tears welled up in the bottom of Papyrus’ eye sockets and he was bawling.

“I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU DID THIS FOR ME! YOU ARE THE BEST FRIEND EVER. I’M SO GLAD SANS BROUGHT YOU HOME,” Papyrus said as he pulled you into a tight hug. You chuckled over his wording but pulled your arms around him to hug him back.

“I can’t promise it will work but I can promise we’ll try our best.”

“I HAVE THE UTMOST FAITH IN THE TWO OF YOU,” Papyrus declared. “WHAT DO YOU NEED FROM ME?”

You explained the procedure. Because you didn’t want the magic inside of the syringe for extended periods of time you wanted Sans to make the replica before you withdrew the bone marrow.

Sans studied Papyrus’ left hand intently and then conjured up one of his glowing blue bones. Something reacted in your chest again and you felt the need to press your hand to your chest.

“that’s your soul reacting,” Sans explained. “don’t worry, i won’t call it out.”

You wanted to ask exactly what he meant by that but he needed to concentrate so you had to table your questions and focus on the task at hand. You could always ask him about souls later.

It was fascinating to watch as Sans sculpted the long bone into a skeleton hand with all the little details. Papyrus matched your look of awe. He probably hadn’t seen his brother do anything like this before. A few beads of sweat appeared on Sans’ skull to show how much this morphing of magic was taking out of him.

When he was finished with the broad details, you remembered that you had to get ready too.

“Pap, now it’s our turn,” you told the skeleton and pulled out the needle.

“AH, CAN’T IT BE A LITTLE SMALLER THAN THAT? NEYH HEH,” Papyrus asked and your heart ached for him. The tall scary monster didn’t like needles. How could you ever have thought that they were just heartless and brutal animals?

“I’m sorry but unfortunately we don’t have a choice,” you said and considered what you could do to comfort him. You would offer him your hand but you needed both to use and stabilize the needle.

“Hold onto my shoulder, yeah? I’m right here with you,” you promised and the skeleton nodded and pinched his eye sockets closed. You took a deep breath and moved the needle to his vertebrae. You had no clue whether it would hurt or not.

You let the needle slide in, which it thankfully did without any objection. Papyrus let out a little whimper and squeezed your shoulder slightly. Then you started to draw back and the grip became excruciatingly painful, you bit down on your lip as not to scream as focused on withdrawing the magical bone marrow. Syringe filled to the specifics you’d calculated, you pulled the needle out and as you did so, Papyrus fell backwards onto the sofa, unconscious.

You almost panicked and Sans calling out your nickname with the same kid of panic didn’t help one bit. However, Papyrus was still alive, his bones warm to the touch and his ribcage moving up and down slightly as if he was breathing.

“I think it just took it out of him. He’ll be fine,” you said to reassure both Sans and yourself. Alphys had made a note that withdrawing magic like that might tire out the subject but as long as the magic was restored momentarily everything should be okay. You needed to work fast.

“Is the hand ready?” you asked and turned around to see a perfect replica of Papyrus’ right hand, only flipped, floating and glowing under Sans’ hands.

“ready,” he said with a huff of exhaustion.

You moved to inject it and Sans pulled back at the last moment.

“if you touch it, it’ll hurt you,” he reminded you. “let me move it."

You held still as he moved his floating hand towards the tip of your syringe. Once in, you squeezed it out very carefully. Slowly, the skeleton hand started glowing less and less and taking more permanent shape. Half way through your moved over to Papyrus’ sleeping form and worked on carefully making the extracted magic bind the two magic entities together. With the syringe completely emptied you pulled back and observed your work.

The hand was bright white, much whiter than the rest of Papyrus’ bones but it seemed to have the right texture and weight when you carefully lifted it in your hands. It was humming with magic as well and it was definitely attached. It would still stand to see if Papyrus would be able to move it like a real hand.

That would have to wait until he woke up. Still, it felt like a small victory, even if you didn’t want to celebrate too early. You helped move Papyrus sideways and pulled the blanket you usually slept with over him.

“I think we did it,” you whispered and turned to see Sans grinning at you. His real grin, not the one he put on all the time.

“i can’t believe it worked,” he said and you reminded him to be careful with saying that but he just chuckled at your worries. You moved to the kitchen to give the exhausted Papyrus some space.

“i can feel his soul accepting it. there’s a bit of my magic in there too but it’s mostly his own. you did it. i don’t know how i can thank you.”

You shook your head in dismissal. “Don’t worry about it, Sans. I told you. I wanted to help him. Back when I thought you were a murderer of humans, Papyrus offered me comfort and friendship, even though I still feared him a little. He’s too pure for this world and I’m all too happy if I could help bring back just a bit of what he’s lost.”

Sans put his hand on your shoulder and you flinched away from his touch. He seemed startled himself and backed off immediately. However, you hadn’t flinched because he touched you, like you would done when you first met. You pulled back your top and got a good look on the skin over your shoulder, which was already starting to bruise.

“It wasn’t you, Sans,” you said to reassure him but he had already noticed and moved to study your injury. He pulled back the fabric of your top slightly and the tips of his phalanges touched your bare skin. It left an oddly buzzing sensation behind when he stepped back.

“you shouldn’t have told him to hold onto you,” Sans said with a deep frown.

“Hey,” you said and reached out to catch him by the shoulder. “He needed support. I think he just forgot how strong he is.”

“i think you forgot how strong we are,” Sans countered.

And he was right. You had momentarily forgotten that the grip of Sans or Papyrus far outmatched that of any human. They could crush you to pieces if they so chose. You shuddered at the thought.

“sorry,” Sans muttered. “i didn’t…”

“It’s okay,” you assured him. “It’s just surprisingly easy to forget that the two of you could kill me without any effort.”

“we wouldn’t,” Sans said seriously. “hey, wait here.”

You blinked and he was gone and you blinked again and he was back in the same spot this time Undyne in tow, who didn’t seem too pleased having been dragged along his short cuts.

“undyne, I need to get some monster food in doe. you’re watching pap.”

“Excuse me?” Undyne said and sounded thoroughly pissed off until she noticed the bruise peaking out from under your top and then looked from you to Sans with a raised brow.

“It wasn’t Sans,” you stepped in to defend him immediately. “Papyrus did it by accident because pulling out magic is apparently extremely painful.”

With that, she moved her attention to Papyrus and the new hand at the end of his right wrist.

“You actually did it, didn’t you?” she said in amazement. “You fixed his hand.”

“We don’t know for sure yet,” you interjected.

“can you watch him? his energy seems fine but i don’t want him waking up alone and we have nothing to heal doe here.”

“Of course, I’ll watch over my best student. Go to Grillby’s and ask for something with kick in. You know he has the good stuff if you ask for it.”

“It’s just a bruise,” you argued.

“Don’t even try, Doe. Sans has made up his mind and when he’s done that, there’s no talking him out of it. I’ll watch little Papyrus. Don’t worry. Go get healed up.”

Sans held out his hand, undoubtedly wanting to teleport you there but you just rolled your eyes and walked toward the door. “It’s only just across town. Don’t be a lazy bones, Sans,” you told him.

“I like her,” Undyne said in approval as you waltzed out the door with Sans tailing behind you.

It was just early evening but the streets were full with people. As the last time you’d been out together, a lot of monsters looked your way and took notice of Sans. Again some seemed to regard him as a hero and something like something stuck under their shoe. You found yourself making eye contact with more of the humans around town and exchanging smiles.

It was weird walking into Grillby’s for the second time in your life. The hustle and bustle stopped only momentarily this time before people went back to whatever they were doing before you walked in. Sans headed directly to the bar where Grillby was wiping down a glass.

“hey grills. good to see you, my man. the usual for me and something with a kick for her. got a bruise that needs healing,” Sans said and it made Grillby look directly at you.

“Are you okay with him?” Grillby asked and adjusted his glasses.

You were so baffled by his deep baritone voice and that you stammered for a few seconds before sounds came out. “It was an accident. I forgot how strong monsters were. No one’s fault,” you said.

Grillby looked as to evaluate the two of you but then just nodded and waved you off. You took place in the same booth as last time.

“Did he think you hurt me or something?” you asked.

“he might have wondered. it’s no secret i’ve been more unstable since frisk disappeared.”

“But why would he care, Sans? I understand that you don’t brutally murder humans like I thought but don’t monsters at least stick together? Some are either so scared or angry that I’m sure they’d love to see a nosy human get hurt,” you said and thought of Alphys who seemed so innocent.

“some maybe but not grills. he’s very fond of humans, even if he doesn’t advocate it.”

You dropped the serious topics and instead started to swap stories of the different restaurants you’d been too. Sans loosened up and started using puns quite a lot that you knew was something he did when he was nervous. You didn’t quite understand why he’d be nervous when you were just hanging out but you didn’t ask him about it.

You were left alone and the food tasted absolutely heavenly. On the walk home from Grillby’s, you pulled back your top and saw that the bruise that had started to form had evaporated completely.

“Monster food is amazing. I can’t help but wonder what would have happened if we never went to war. There were studies started around how to reproduce monster food with human technology. Think of how useful it would be for hospitals,” you pondered and didn’t notice that Sans had fallen silent and his grin dropped slightly. “Hey, what is it, Sans?”

He lightened up with your attention on him but you could recognize his mask by now.

“you talk about us sharing information like it will only bring good and yet you won’t confess where you think frisk is being held…”

“Sans, I-“

“let me finish, please,” he continued. “i didn’t mean for you to feel bad about it. just that you don’t remember how catastrophic it could be for us monsters if humans knew all of our secrets. it was the reasons humans could trap us underground all that time ago. we told them all our secrets and they used them against us. so i have always been able to understand why you won’t tell me about secret human government locations, doe. i can see things from your point of view. i got it from the moment you told me in that hotel room.”

You kept walking while you considered his words. He was right, you’d told him your reasons in the hotel room you’d been held in after you failed to go through with your attack. He hadn’t asked about Frisk since, not once. At most, he’d mentioned that he still wanted to know but he’d never pressured you like he had the first days of your captivity.

“I’m sorry, Sans. I guess I didn’t think about it from your perspective. From mine, it’s just a massive bout of information that I couldn’t wait to learn about but I do know that research can be turned against you once it’s out there. I should have been more considerate… Is that why you snapped at me when you thought I was categorizing all the stuff about you, including Pap’s hand?”

Sans shrugged but in a way that meant yes. You made it back to the skeleton brothers’ home and found Undyne impatiently switching channels on the television and Papyrus still passed out where you left him.

“You’re back! Finally. Your brother snores, Sans,” Undyne said accusingly to Sans and prodded a finger at his breast bone. “I hope you feel better, Doe. I’ll see myself out.”

She made a swift exit and the only sound that could be heard in the room was Papyrus’ soft snores. It occurred to you that he was sleeping where you usually did which meant that you were without somewhere to sleep.

Sans seemed to be able to read your thoughts because he spoke up before you could. “you can take pap’s bed tonight. he won’t mind, not after the feat you just pulled off. he probably wouldn’t mind either way. he’s very hospitable.”

“We’ll see,” you said. “Maybe he’ll wake up.”

Past midnight and he was still not woken up. Sans assured you his energy and soul was fine so he probably just needed more rest. Sans showed you upstairs and into Papyrus’ room.

It was rather simplistic and normal other than the fact his bedframe was in the shape of a sports car and his walls were covered with posters of different television shows and human celebrities, like the kind you got out of teen magazines.

You changed the bed sheets Sans offered you and then got settled in for the night. It felt odd going to bed in an actual bed after having slept on the sofa for so long. It was luckily quite comfortable but you realized how much you’d missed having a bed.

And it made you think of your apartment back home. Would it have been cleared of your stuff and rented out to someone else by now? You’d been gone for a month soon and you had definitely missed the rent, so unless someone had covered it for you, which was unlikely, it probably wasn’t yours anymore. You wondered what they’d done with all of your things.

Life was weird. You had settled into a routine here and you’d momentarily forgotten about the life that you left behind. Studying monsters had been your main focus for the past year and now you were friends with some of them.

You never thought that you’d be able to meet a monster in real life, let alone live with them how you did Sans and Papyrus. And even Undyne was warming up to you now.

The thoughts kept you cruelly awake, even though you felt exhausted. The house seemed so quiet up here. Downstairs, you could hear the dishwasher giving the odd grumble or the sound of someone passing by the house on their way home.

It was almost eerily quiet up here until you heard a soft whimper. Instantly, you thought it might be Papyrus suffering and you slipped out form under your covers. Barefoot in a pair of sweatpants and an oversized T-shirt, you went out to investigate. However, before you made it down the stairs to check on Papyrus, you could locate the sounds as coming from behind Sans’ door.

You hadn’t been inside of his room before and Papyrus mentioned that Sans always had his door locked anyway. You went to gently knock on the door but with your first push, the door swung open slightly. You pushed it open further and took a look inside.

Sans’ room was more bare than Papyrus’ in the terms of decorations but there were clothes across his floor and some of the trash and clothes seemed to swirl around as if they were leaves guided by the wind.

Sans whimpered again and then thrashed, clutching onto his duvet and pulling it with him. He moved onto his front and you saw his exposed back. He was only wearing some sweatpants shorts and no T-shirt, so almost his entire ribcage was exposed. You carefully knocked on the doorframe, feeling like you were intruding and overstepping your bounds, but Sans didn’t sound in a good way. He whimpered and thrashed again. He was muttering something under his breath but you couldn’t make out what.

He didn’t seem to react to your knock at all. Suddenly, he wasn’t just whimpering, he was snarling in pain and you moved towards to bed without thinking. He was having some sort of nightmare and he needed to wake up because it sounded horrible.

“Sans,” you called out.

“no, no,” he muttered. “not again. please no. no. no. no!”

“Sans!” you raised your voice and reached out for him, trying to catch hold of his shoulder blades.

It didn’t work. In fact, it seemed to trigger something and Sans turned pulling you onto the bed and suddenly you were being crushed under him, even is he was lighter than you expected just like his hand when he’d let you study it the night before.

“Sans!” you said more panicked now because his eye sockets were shut tightly but his hands were on your shoulders and he was still muttering nonsense.

You realized what a terribly dangerous situation you’d gotten yourself into. Awake Sans had promised not to hurt you but you’d snuck up on him when he was asleep, only hours after you’d been reminded of how much damage monsters could do, even if they didn’t mean to.

You tried to move your hand out from under him and managed to get it to his face where you moved around his sharp teeth to press a thumb hard onto his closed eye sockets. They sprung open and tiny pinpricks came into focus as the thrashing a stopped. Unfortunately that meant his body just fell down on yours until his eye sockets widened in surprise and he sprung back as if you’d brunt him.

“doe?” he asked confused “what? what are you doing here?”

He moved to the far corner of his bed, bringing his duvet with him to cover his exposed bones. You were just trying to breathe and get your heart rate under control.

“I… I heard you having a nightmare. I tried to wake you by knocking on the door but you weren’t listening… So I tried to shake you awake.”

“i… what? did i hurt you?” he asked worriedly and you quickly shook your head.

“I mean you kind of scared me but that was my fault. I thought I could just wake you but when I got near you grabbed hold of me and…”

Sans looked absolutely mortified and ready to claw his own eyes out, if he had any.

“Hey,” you said and reached over to place a hand on his radius and ulna. “I messed up. I’m the one who should be sorry.”

“i could have hurt you. when i fall asleep… i lose track of the reality because all the memories of alternative timelines come flooding back. i remember bloodshed and resets and being trapped in an endless loop until frisk finally got us out,” Sans confessed.

He looked so startled and vulnerable and you didn’t know what to do to reassure him. He looked like he needed time to think but you didn’t exactly want to leave him alone.

“I’ll go make us tea and be right back,” you said and he just nodded. That gave him approximately five minutes before you came back up the stairs and into his room. You were careful not to trip over any of the clothes.

“thanks,” he said and took note of how you stood quite awkwardly by the bed. “you can sit down. i won’t try anything. scouts’ honor.”

You snorted but sat down on the edge of his bed anyway. “Like you was ever a scout.”

“i could have been,” Sans argued and then paused for a long moment while he took his first sip of the hot tea. “are you scared of me again?”

You took a sip and pondered his question. “No, not really. You caught me off guard but it was because I was being careless. It won’t happen again.”

“no, it probably will,” Sans said and sounded somber. “humans who befriend monsters always end up getting hurt and caught in the cross-fire. just look at frisk. why are you still here, doe?”

You knew all the underlying questions within his general question. Why had you not left when he’d told you to after Undyne’s spear sliced you up? Why hadn’t you left when Alphys threatened you? Why hadn’t you left the moment you’d fulfilled your promise to Papyrus? What was still keeping you here?

You didn’t have a clear answer. Maybe, you didn’t want to go back now that you knew the truth. You knew you’d get nauseated listening to the monster hating propaganda now that you knew how they really were. You couldn’t go back to the curious but also naïve girl you’d been before. It didn’t work like that.

And perhaps you weren’t ready to say goodbye to the monsters you’d gotten to care for. When you returned, you’d be interrogated and possibly accused of being a monster sympathizer unless you emphasized your hatred for Sans’ kind and you didn’t know if you were capable of that anymore.

“Things will be different when I go back,” you confessed. “I’m different and I can’t be the person I was before. I can’t be the trembling victim they expect me to be. But I can’t tell them the truth about you guys either because they would just throw me in jail as a monster sympathizer. I can’t turn back the clock to a simpler time and I’m not ready to face everything quite yet.”

Sans hummed as if he was considering your words and you could see some notion taking up his brainpower.

You pulled your legs up under you and leaned back against Sans’ bed’s headrest. Normally, you’d have your AM teatime on the sofa downstairs but Papyrus was still snoring on it.

“Want me to leave?” you asked and took another sip of your tea.

Your question could be taken two ways, as to mean right now or your presence in their lives in general.

“no,” Sans said and he had a soft edge to his voice that he usually only used around Papyrus. “i don’t want you to leave.”

You kept chatting about the most random crap like you usually did during your late night chats. It felt comfortable and familiar, even with the different setting. At some point, your eyes became heavy and you drifted off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you think? I actually really love how this chapter came together. And yay Pap got his hand back! And the reader and Sans are getting along even better, even if she has to remember monsters can be dangerous despite their intentions. Let me know your thoughts?
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday the 5th of November 2017 (which is the day after my birthday, so pray I am not hungover - I usually handle my alcohol pretty well but just in case).


	14. A Newfound Trust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She should be heading out the door. She had managed to help Pap and there was nothing holding her here anymore. She should get ready to go back to her people and leave the monsters behind.

Your feet felt cold. However, other than that you felt warm, comfortable and safe. As sleep gradually lifted, you sunk deeper into the soft surface beneath you. It seemed like the sofa had gotten a lot more comfortable overnight…

Your eyes snapped open when you remembered.

Papyrus’ hand. He was sleeping on the sofa that you’d taken up residence on. You’d gone to sleep in the younger skeleton’s room, however, you’d heard sounds of distress and walked down the hall to find Sans having a nightmare.

There was something resting on your side, on your ribs. You forced your eyes open, while trying to keep your increasing heartbeat under control. You were indeed in Sans’ bedroom and it was definitely a skeleton hand that rested loosely on your side.

His touch felt warm and the slight hum of magic from within his bones didn’t scare you like it had before. It actually felt kind of comforting.

You moved so carefully to be able to look behind you and catch a glimpse of the skeleton monster. There was still too much space between you to be actually spooning but it still felt quite intimate.

Sans’ eye sockets were shut and his maw was slightly open. His teeth still looked terrifying up this close when you were reminded how sharp his teeth were despite not being able to tell when he was just wearing his usual grin and had the edges of his teeth hidden. He looked relaxed like this, his ribcage slowly rising and falling despite no visible lungs.

He was still shirtless and you indulged yourself as you studied his ribcage. He was fascinating to observe. It was still a mystery how he was being held together. And him and Papyrus were the only monsters of their kind, according to the records all the monsters who emerged from the Underground had filled out. It had been debated heavily in the media whether the terrifying skeleton monsters were boss monsters as well.

And your were in his bed with his hand still resting gently against the soft rise and fall of your own body.

It had been exactly three weeks since you’d been kidnapped and you would never have imagined this was how you’d wake up three weeks in. In fact, you had been pretty sure you’d been dead by now.

The monsters had turned out to be nothing like you thought they were.

Just like everyone else, you’d blindly believed what you’ve been told by the people who were supposed to be honest with you and act with your best intentions at heart. The politicians had failed you and the media had either been sloppy or corrupt.

You turned around under Sans’ hand so you could face him. You weren’t exactly sure why you didn’t just got up and moved away before he woke up. This would be awkward when he woke up but right now you couldn’t bring yourself to care. His hand stayed on you, as you’d carefully turned over.

You were comfortable at that very moment. You shouldn’t have been comfortable in the bed of the monster who’d kidnapped you but life didn’t always make sense. Besides, he wasn’t officially your kidnapper anymore since you were free to go.

You were free to go…

So why weren’t you heading out the door at the earliest opportunity? What you’d told Sans last night had been true. Everything would be different when you came back. In less than a month, Frisk, Sans, Undyne, Papyrus and even Alphys had collectively managed to turn your world upside down. But delaying the inevitable wouldn’t make it go away.

You’d have to go back eventually and you’d never see the monsters again.

Sans stirred slightly, his hand tightening ever so slightly where it still rested on the now opposite side of your ribs. Then his eye sockets snapped open and they were void of their usual pinpricks.

Your breath caught in your throat. You had not realized how close you’d been to him because he’d seemed so nonthreatening and small when he was sleeping. His eye sockets weren’t just hollow, they were seemingly endlessly black – the kind of black that seems so impossibly dark. He blinked a couple of time, clearly caught off guard, and his pinpricks returned.

“err… morning?” he said and the natural response that came to you was to chuckle. He looked practically adorable. You noted how he wasn’t moving back and creating distance between you again as he’d done last night.

“am i dreaming?” Sans whispered with a face of total confusion to match.

“No,” you said and shook your head. “Not unless this is some surreal shared dream. I came by to check on you last night, remember? We just have fallen asleep.”

Your words only made Sans frown harder and he followed his left hand to where it still rested against your side.

“are you really not scared of me anymore?” he asked in a small voice.

“You’re not that scary, Sans. And no that was not an invitation to make your menacing grin and remind me how dangerous monsters are. No need for that.”

Now it was Sans’ turn to chuckle and mirth reached his eye sockets.

You found yourself smiling back and then you noticed the alarm clock on the bedside table. It was past noon! How was that even possible? You needed to check on Papyrus and his hand but you were reluctant to break out of this little bubble just yet.

“We’ve slept for over ten hours,” you told Sans, who turned around to look at the clock behind him, taking his hand slowly off you as he did so.

The pleasant tingle of magic left your skin and you wondered why it felt like a loss. Magic was something you’d been taught to be scared off but it hadn’t really ever stuck. You’d been too fascinated with the concept to all together disregard it. But you’d always thought you’d just see magic as this scientific entity to be analyzed, not miss the touch of monsters made up of magic.

“huh… that’s new,” Sans noted and turned back to face you. “i haven’t sleep that long since…”

Sans cut himself off and you really wanted to know where he’d been going with that sentence but you didn’t want to make him uncomfortable. Instead, you sat up and stretched, which made you yawn as well.

“We should go check on Pap,” you said and swung your feet out over the bed’s edge. You felt a slight shiver go through you as your bare feet touched the floor.

“hey doe, thank you for… thank you for checking up on me,” Sans said with such sincerity that you were happy you’d steadied yourself before exiting out of bed. Otherwise, the admission of gratitude might have floored you.

“No problem, Sans,” you said, glancing back over you shoulder at the skeleton monster.

Papyrus was still asleep on the sofa when you came downstairs and it worried you slightly but Sans said that Papyrus’ soul was fine and his magic had taken well to the new addition.

You took to the kitchen to make pancakes. It felt like a special day today. Not only had you managed to keep your promise to help Papyrus, you’d also woken up in Sans’ bed and the first emotion hadn’t been fear – like arguably maybe it should have been. You’d just felt a bit confused but you hadn’t been scared.

As you whisked together the batter, it dawned on you exactly why you weren’t afraid anymore.

Up until this point, you’d had to actively choose to believe in Sans but after you’d gotten to know more of his backstory and seen how he acted compassionate most of the time, you’d actually begun to trust him. It wasn’t something you had to choose to do at every turn. It just happened by itself now.

“i’m no cook but that shouldn’t be smoking, should it?” Sans called out and you looked down at the first pancake you were in the process of charring instead of cooking.

You yelped and tossed the burnt pancake into the trash.

“The first one never turn out good anyway,” you said as a defense and look into the living room to find Sans sat in the arm chair observing Papyrus. “You said he’s okay, right?”

“he is,” Sans confirmed. "i’m just… just thinking.”

You decided to let Sans have his thinking space and went back to making pancakes while keeping your own thoughts in check. Would this be your last day here?

Would you be willing to admit to yourself how much you’d miss the two goofy skeletons or would you have to repress that while you pretended to hate monsters at the evaluation to stay out of trouble?

Would the prejudice and hatred rub off on you again when you excited New New Home? Would you forget that monsters were actually pretty kind? And funny? And surprisingly a lot like humans?

You’d mixed too much batter and you just kept stacking up pancakes. When you poured the last bit in, you suddenly heard a voice finally awake from the living room.

“SANS! WHY ARE YOU STARING AT ME? WHAT HAPPENED? WHERE IS… OH MY! LOOK, SANS! MY HAND! I HAVE A HAND AGAIN! IT LOOKS ALMOST LIKE MY OTHER ONE JUST SHINIER! WHAT A WONDERFUL DESIGN AND MY PHALANGES MOVE TOO! I NOW HAVE TWO GLORIOUS HANDS! MY ENEMIES BETTER WATCH OUT. NYEH HEH!”

You flipped the final pancake onto the stack and walked out the kitchen to the living room with breakfast, or lunch, if you took the time into account.

“DOE!” Papyrus exclaimed, heading straight for you, knocking into you to wrap you up in a tight hug. The stack of pancakes fell from your grasp but you didn’t hear the smash of the plate.

Instead, you found the stack and plate floating mid-air surrounded by a vague blue glow.

“easy with her, pap. you almost ruined the breakfast she’s carefully been preparing for you.”

“BREAKFAST?” Papyrus asked and pulled back from the hug. “PANCAKES! YOU MADE PANCAKES!”

“Yeah, I hope you don’t mind. I know we talked about doing that together but I just thought…”

“WORRY NOT, HUMAN! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, NOW WITH TWO FUNCTIONING HANDS, IS NOT MAD. IT IS THE PERFECT CELEBRATION OF YOUR SUCCESS.”

“I’m glad you think so, Pap,” you said and on a whim you leaned forward to wrap your arms around Papyrus one more time to give him a reassuring squeeze. When you looked up at his face, he was actually blushing.

“SANS, WHAT DID YOU DO TO OUR HUMAN FRIEND WHILE I WAS SLEEPING? SHE’S AWEFULLY AFFECTIONATE.”

You just smiled and rolled your eyes at Papryus’ wording. “Nothing,” you said before Sans could open his mouth. “I’m just so happy you’re okay, you silly skeleton. I was worried about you.”

Papyrus looked even more touched and a tad embarrassed, as he insisted that he didn’t need people to worry about him because he was strong and capable. You didn’t counter argue how it was nice to have someone look out for you, not matter how strong you were.

Papyrus was eating the pancakes with absolute glee and you had to promise to show him how to make it. Sans took one pancake, which he drowned in marble syrup. Halfway through the stack of pancakes, the front door suddenly burst open.

“Why is nobody answering their damn pho…” Undyne shouted but stopped speaking when she must have sensed the three of you at the table eating pancakes. Undyne’s focus went from you to Papyrus to Sans and back to you again.

She looked casual in jeans and a leather jacket instead of her usual uniform. She still looked scary objectively but you noticed how her ears dropped a bit. She looked uncertain and a lot less fierce at present moment when it was evident that she’s come over here to check up on Papyrus.

“Why don’t you join us, Undyne?” you offered and tried not to remember how the mere mention of her name had scared you. Now you were asking her to join you for pancakes.

Undyne looked baffled at the offer.

“WHAT A GREAT IDEA, DOE!” Papyrus agreed and darted to the kitchen to pick up another plate and set of utensils. He proudly came in carrying it in his new right hand, set it down and the table and went over to the door to pull at Undyne, who seemed frozen.

The atmosphere, surprisingly, stayed light and positive. Most of it was Papyrus blabbering on like usual and where you or Sans would usually be mostly quiet, Undyne was all up for verbal sparring.

It was odd to get to see the clear platonic love and deep friendship between the two of them. When Undyne was feeling Papyrus’ new hand, you should have sworn that she wiped away a tear from under her sunglasses. Undyne was a scary hot-tempered monster, yes, but upon closer inspection you realized that it actually made a lot of sense.

She’s been captain of the Royal Guard underground and she’d spent most of her life learning how to fight. She was brave, a little fool hearted, and rushed into situations without preparation. And then she’d lost her sight completely. She’d had to adjust to a different way of living and that wouldn’t have been without challenges at every step.

It was no wonder she’d turned even harsher up here. It was a way to protect herself and never let anyone see the vulnerability.

You pondered if you’d be able to extract magic from her to give her new eyes but the mere prospect of it seemed too daunting and you had no calculations to work off of. But just the notion that your thoughts went there showed how much you’d changed.

When you’d been locked up in the hotel room cell, you’d actually been smug that you’d figured out that Undyne had been blind and wondered how you could use that to your advantage. Now thoughts like that made you feel a little sick.

“Well, this has all been glorious but I have to get going. Alphys is waiting for me,” Undyne said and got up from her seat. “I’m glad you’re okay. Human, Doe, am I right in assuming this is the last time I’ll see you?”

“WHAT?” Papyrus interrupted. “WHY? WHY WOULD DOE LEAVE?”

You didn’t know what to say to either Undyne or Papyrus. Papyrus still didn’t fully understand that you had actually been kidnapped when you came here originally. And Undyne should be right that you’d been heading out but you didn’t feel quite ready yet.

You looked to Sans for help but he was just watching you with a neutral expression on his face but at the same time barely hidden intense interest in his eye sockets.

“Maybe?” you eventually settled on because having three monsters stare at you might not frighten you anymore but it did make you rather uncomfortable.

“HUMAN, WHAT…”

“wait your turn, pap,” Sans interrupted his brother.

Undyne gave a firm nod as the corner of her lips curled up into a half-smile. “Then maybe we’ll see each other again but if not,” she said and extended her hand, “I’m happy we can say goodbye on much better terms than we met.”

You hadn’t actually touched any monster that wasn’t Sans or Papyrus but you moved your hand out to shake Undyne’s deadly fingers without too much hesitation. The scales on her palm were surprisingly soft and she kept the grip firm but not painfully so.

“See you later, skeleton punks. And Papyrus, don’t think you’re getting out of our next training session. Now we’ve got to test out your limits with two functioning hands!”

With that Undyne jogged out the door and slammed it behind her.

“WOULD YOU REALLY LEAVE US, DOE?” Papyrus asked and he looked like a puppy begging its owner to not leave it home alone. The sight broke your heart, even if it came from a skeleton monster that was over 6 feet tall.

“I told you before that I couldn’t stay forever, Pap,” you said.

“DID YOU TELL SANS THAT THING YET?”

“No, but I…”

“THEN YOU CAN’T LEAVE. YOU SAID SANS WOULD EITHER MAKE YOU TELL HIM OR HE’D LET YOU LEAVE BUT HE WON’T. I SEE THE WAY HE…”

“pap,” Sans said in such a deep and powerful voice that the other monster actually stopped his rambling. “she is free to go. i won’t make her stay.”

“BUT SHE’S OUR FRIEND, SANS. THINGS ARE MORE FUN WITH HER AROUND. WITH BOTH UNDYNE AND DOE AS MY MENTORS MY COOKING HAS IMPROVED SO MUCH. AND SHE ACTUALLY LISTENS TO ME INSTEAD OF JUST NODDING IN AGREEMENT LIKE YOU DO SOMETIMES. SHE’S FUN AND KIND AND NICE. AND SHE MAKES YOU HAPPIER TOO. YOU MOPE AROUND A LOT LESS WHEN SHE’S HERE. AND YOU’RE THE ONE WHO INVITED HER! HOW CAN YOU LET HER LEAVE?”

Your heart felt like it was being torn apart. It ached for how passionately Papyrus spoke about the friendship you’d built together over this relatively short time. You recalled Sans’ words about hurting Papyrus and at the time you couldn’t understand why he’d been so mad about it. Surely, becoming friends wouldn’t be seen as something bad. It was a good thing but… watching how Papyrus’ heart was breaking at the mere mention of you leaving, you suddenly understood why Sans had warned you.

This wasn’t the way you’d thought this would come to an end. Being able to leave out of your own free will had been the fantasy dream, the ideal ending to this nightmare. Only, somewhere along the way it had stopped being a nightmare. Somewhere between fun baking times, late night conversations over tea, secrets shared, being healed and looked after, things had changed.

Sans had been right that you’d hurt Papyrus by becoming his friend. You couldn’t stay here forever. Monsters and humans were at war and you knew now that you couldn’t just sit and not do something to stop it now. And if you stayed, the secret about Frisk’s potential whereabouts would eventually tear you to shreds.

It was already beginning to do that. You felt like a fraud every single time you kept your mouth shut. But Sans’ plan to fix everything seemed flawed. You didn’t think that turning back the clock would solve anything of this. And yet, you did want Frisk to go back to their family.

When you’d met the teenager, you hadn’t been able to understand how they could regard monsters as their family. You’d thought them a bit insane but you knew better now. You could see how monsters like Papyrus and Sans could become your chosen family.

Something in your chest ached because if you let them, they might be able to become _your_ chosen family as well. However, things were too complicated. You couldn’t just hide here and play house with the skeleton monsters.

You remembered how Alphys had looked at you with pure terror and unconcealed hatred and you knew so many humans that looked at monsters like that too. You couldn’t just stay here with stuff like that was happening. You had to do something about it.

“Pap,” you said and walked up to him and took both of his hands in yours and make him look into your eyes. “I am so beyond happy that I got to know you. You’re the first monster I felt comfortable around. I was scared of your kind before I came here but you showed me monsters could be innocent, happy and carefree. You have been part of changing my whole world perspective, my friend. But I was never going to be able to stay forever. It’s easy to forget in here but there’s a war going on outside of your walls and there are people looking for me.”

Not friends. Not family. But yeah, the government was probably interested in knowing where an intern, who had multiple times needed reminders of where not to poke her nose, had gone.

“BUT… IF YOU GO, YOU WON’T COME BACK, WILL YOU?” Papyrus asked in a broken voice and tears were gathering at the bottom of his eye sockets.

You wanted to lie to reassure him but it wasn’t very likely. Even if you managed to escape jail time, going back here would be a clear indication that your loyalties had been split.

“Probably not.”

“NO!” Papyrus wailed and tears started rolling down over his cheekbones.

“Hey,” you said and reached out to catch the tears falling. How could skeletons even cry? There was still so much you didn’t know but oddly, the last thing on your mind was scientifically studying how monster bodies worked at the moment. “How about I wait until tomorrow? We’ll have a final day of baking and fun together, huh? How does that sound? We can make it the best day ever.”

Papyrus perked up slightly and then did a power pose.

“I WILL MAKE IT THE BEST BEST DAY EVER!”

You laughed as Papyrus pulled you into a hug and started spinning you around. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Sans watching the two of you intensely with an expression completely void of emotions.

The day did actually turn out to be the best best day ever. You did all the things you had done the first week you’d stayed with them; baking, watching television, chatting about monster and human customs. You also made sure to examine Papyrus’ new hand and compare it to his other one. They were almost identical but the new one had a slight blue hue to it. You geeked out over being able to properly study the bones but you restricted yourself and didn’t try to make any mental notes about it.

You also showed Pap all the hand clapping games you knew and the skeleton absolutely loved it. Sometimes, he got a little over-enthusiastic and went in too hard but without fail, every time a faint glow on his hands would show up and lessen the impact.

Sans was clearly watching you throughout the whole day but even more quietly than usual. He was going over the Book of Legends because he insisted that you take it back with you since it was you who’d found it. You had been inclined to leave it behind, mostly because you feared that any possession on your person when you were found would be confiscated. You might just leave it somewhere in the house for the brothers to find after you left.

It wasn’t something you wanted to dwell on for too long. You had to enjoy your final day with the skeleton brothers before you had to go out and face the consequences of your actions.

You had no idea how you’d be able to pull off being a monster hater anymore. Two monsters named after fonts had destroyed any misplaced hatred that had been there to begin with.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you like it? Also, despite the air of this chapter, the story is far from over. There's still so much to come but so far I'm just happy with how the reader is getting more and more comfortable with the monsters and starts to feel genuinely safe. But there's still secrets between them, which is never a good thing. Also, I found the bed sharing scene so adorable when I was writing it. Let me know your thoughts on this chapter?
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday the 12th of November.


	15. A Soul Viewing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One final night in the skeleton brothers' home before she would never see them again. However, there is one final thing that she wanted to ask Sans about, even if she didn't realise the consequences of her request.

It was past midnight when Pap finally dozed off on the sofa as you watched the final episode of Friends. It seemed oddly fitting that you’d come full circle and got teary-eyed watching the six friends go for a final cup of coffee before parting ways. You were secretly happy that Papyrus had fallen asleep before that final scene. He hadn’t wanted to go to bed no matter how many times he’s almost drifted off to sleep but now he was snoring softly.

He looked endearing with his arms and legs pulled towards his torso, curled up like a ball. Without thinking about it, you leaned over and planted a light kiss on his temple. The texture of his skull felt slightly odd under your lips but it was just a quick peck. Papyrus had been making sure to make ever moment jam-packed full of “fun activities” but honestly it was quite nice to have a little quiet time too.

You didn’t know how you were supposed to accept that you would never see these guys again. Some might try to argue that it was some weird form of Stockholm Syndrome but you seriously doubted that, especially considering Papyrus hadn’t even known that you’d been held here against your will and you’d only begun to trust Sans after he said he’d let you go.

“he should have gone to bed,” Sans muttered as he watched the curled up Papyrus, who got enveloped in a warm blue glow and suddenly his sleeping form started hovering over the sofa and start floating up the stairs. You watched in awe at the blatant use of powerful magic for something as simple as carrying his little brother to bed.

Sans’ left eye was shimmering slightly until you heard the door upstairs click closed.

“Sometimes, I understand why Pap calls you lazy bones, but then I’m able to tell that using magic actually does tire you out despite your best efforts to make it look entirely effortless.”

“i guess you see right _through_ me, ” Sans joked and slumped back into the sofa. You’d all been sitting on the sofa together, with you in the middle and a skeleton monster on either side. You should move towards the edge now that there was space from where Papyrus had been but you just stayed in your spot.

This would be your last night here. You’d accomplished what you promised Sans and Papyrus. You’d learnt much more than you’d ever have thought possible. You still had questions and more things you wanted to learn about the skeleton brothers and monsters in general but you didn’t have any more time. Well, perhaps you had time for just one final thing.

It was something you’d been interested in for a long time. Souls. Human souls to be specific because you had no delusion that a monster would let you anywhere near their soul, which was allegedly a lot more fragile than human ones.

But you wanted to know about your own soul. Monsters had talked about traits and colors and you had been endlessly curious about it. Humans had tried to make machines that could extract human souls so they could be viewed and studied but all experiments had failed so far. Unless they used a captive monster to engage the human in a fight because then the human soul would come out naturally.

But there had to be a way to do it without entering into battle.

“Sans?” you asked tentatively and the skeleton opened his eye sockets and sat up a little straighter so something in your tone must have alerted him that this was important.

“what’s up, doe?”

You were a bit caught off guard by the gentleness in his voice and the nickname you’d come to actually love. You opened your mouth to ask about him helping you see your soul but instead your name tumbled over your lips. You’d kept it secret out of worries that he might hurt someone you knew but by now you were aware that wasn’t the case.

“That’s my name,” you added. “But I actually quite like that you and Pap call me Doe. It would feel weird to have you call me by my name now but I wanted you to know.”

“huh… it’s a beautiful name but if you want i’ll stick to doe.”

“I’d appreciate it,” you said with a warm smile.

“but that wasn’t what you wanted to say, was it?”

“No,” you confessed and suddenly felt almost flustered with Sans’ intense gaze on you. “I… I wanted to ask you about something before I leave. If you don’t want to help that’s perfectly fine, I won’t blame you. It’s just something I’ve wondered about for a very long time and I think this might me my only chance to…”

Sans chuckled fondly and placed a hand on your arm, which effectively cut off your rambling. “just ask. i probably wouldn’t refuse you anything.”

Sans was an odd character. He was always seemingly joking and lighthearted but he carried so many secrets and so many worries far away from where anyone could see.

“I wanted to see my soul,” you rushed to say before you lost the courage.

Sans’ face morphed into surprise and he looked positively stunned.

“you want to see your soul?” he asked dumbfounded. “you want me to pull out your soul?”

“Yeah… Ever since you monsters emerged from the underground and spoke about soul colors and traits, I’ve always been curious. Humans have tried to build machines to show it but nothing has been successful. So our own souls are still a mystery to us. You don’t have to, if you don’t want. It was probably a stupid question.”

“no!” Sans rushed to say and his whole body looked tense now. “it’s just… well, having your soul pulled out is possible but it leaves you very vulnerable. it’s the easiest for monsters to deal damage directly to an exposed soul. that’s why we pull it out of your body when we attack you. it makes our job easier.”

“Oh,” you said and caught up with why Sans looked so worried. He was scared you didn’t know how much of a vulnerable position you were putting yourself in by letting him voluntarily take your soul out to see it. But you actually did trust Sans. He’d had plenty of chances to hurt you and he hadn’t.

“and i’m extremely good at manipulating souls,” Sans warned. “that’s how i can hold you in place. i clutch onto your soul and hold it in place with my magic.”

You knew the words were meant to scare you off but you just felt more fascinated. Not only to see your own soul but to watch Sans’ soul manipulating magic in person. It should terrify you. Hell, it would have terrified you just two weeks ago but things had changed since then.

“But I trust you, Sans. You wouldn’t hurt me.”

Sans’ expression turned more resigned and his grin got a bit more genuine.

“if you’re sure. to be honest, i’ve been dying to take a look myself.”

“Oh?”

“i can see souls inside of their vessels to a degree but the reading i’ve gotten from you have been… confusing. remember, i’m a curious scientist too.”

Sans had mentioned it in passing before. You actually had a lot more in common than what first met the eye.

“Okay, so how do we do it?”

“i, eh, pull it out. we could also enter into a fight and it’ll come out on its own but i don’t think that’s a good idea. may i?” Sans asked and moved his left hand carefully towards you.

“Yeah,” you said, even though you weren’t entirely sure what you were agreeing to. However, you trusted Sans not to hurt you. You watched as Sans gently came to rest the five fingertips on your chest. You were silently thankful he’d done it above your boobs because that surely would have made it more awkward. Still the contact of boney fingertips against your skin left a pleasant buzzing to spread through your body.

“ready?”

You nodded, too caught up in the humming feeling of Sans’ fingers to speak up. Sans took a steading breath before he began to withdraw his hand very slowly. You felt something detach inside of you and slowly but surely you felt the pull.

You leaned forward slightly as if your body was trying to follow Sans’ pull. Sans’ right hand landed on your shoulder, holding you in place with a gentle grip. He kept pulling his left hand further and further, at the ever-slow pace and suddenly the dark living room was bathed in colored light.

Your first instinct was to close your eyes.

When you opened them again, you found something hovering just in front of you, Sans’ left hand carefully hanging a foot under it. It was the classic shape of a heart that a child might draw but it wasn’t red like one would normally color it.

It was dark blue.

And green.

The two colors were shimmering and mixing. The thing pulsed as if it was alive and it was difficult to imagine that was yours. It was a part of you. Your soul. That beautiful entity of mixing colors was an innate part of who you were just like your brain, your heart and your lungs. Without it, you would be dead and it felt a little concerning to make a comparison to vital organs, which very much could not exist outside of your body.

But your soul could and it didn’t hurt to have it called out. When you finally tore your eyes away from the shimmering display of blue and green colors, you looked at Sans’ face.

Sans looked deep in thought, one hand under your soul and the other one still on your shoulder. You knew an analytical look when you saw one. He was classifying you, making mental notes and trying to take in as much information as possible.

You wondered what he was seeing. He knew so much more about souls. He’d off handedly mentioned that he’d worked on souls with Alphys one time but he’d quickly switched topic after that. He was looking almost as astonished as you felt.

“Is there something wrong with it?” you felt compelled to ask because you weren’t sure what to make of Sans’ expression.

In a flash, he redirected his attention from your soul to your face.

“no,” he said in almost a whisper. “it’s just i’ve never seen a soul like this in person. i suspected that might be what you possessed because i couldn’t pin it down initially but to see it… you have a duality soul, doe.”

“A what?”

Sans smiled both excitedly and fondly. “a duality soul. It’s something old research mentioned, research from when we were still above ground and coexisted with humans. normally, a human soul takes on the most dominant trait of the person. but humans are born with multicolored souls, in fact they encompass all seven colors. but over time as the child grows into the person they will become as adults, one dominant trait emerges. it happens at different ages but always before puberty. and in rare cases, a soul will take two dominant traits but only if…”

Sans paused and moved his left hand upward, and your soul followed seemingly suspended in the air above his hand. Your mind was still trying to catch up with all the information he’d just revealed.

“only if something almost shatter the soul at a fragile age…”

Instantly, you wanted to reach out and press your soul back into your body because you knew exactly what he had to be talking about. Oddly, your soul reacted visibly to your fear. Red lines flared up in the mix of the steady dark blue and green colors. The lines stretched over all of your soul, like an irregular net, or like scars dotted all around your soul.

“what happened?”

“Car crash,” you said without meaning to and felt tears well up in your eyes. “My whole family died. I was eleven.”

Sans looked so sad and it just tugged even more at your heartstrings. You weren’t even sure why you’d said it out loud. You hadn’t said that out loud for years. It was something that still haunted you. It was something that every once in a while would take the starring role in your nightmares. You’d forever been marked by that event more than anything else.

“What are the red lines?” you asked as they faded as you calmed down slightly.

“they’re called shatter lines. it’s determination,” Sans said. “it’s a soul color too. it’s the color frisk has and some think it’s the most powerful of the soul traits. and it’s theorized that duality souls are nearly fractured souls held together only by determination. duality souls have cracks running along them. most souls have some scars but these run deeper than others. your soul barely held on.”

“It’s broken?” you said and felt as if something was crumbling inside of you. You felt like your emotions were running extremely high and you had gravely underestimated when Sans had warned you about the vulnerability of having your soul out in the open.

“no, it’s the opposite of broken, doe. it almost broke but you didn’t let it. the scars show that you’re a survivor. determination kept you together and see how your two traits shimmer and glow? that means they’re strong.”

“Really?” you asked and leaned a little closer to where Sans was keeping your soul suspended over his palm.

“really. you most likely wasn’t done reaching a dominant trait when everything almost shattered. as your soul was struggling to be put back together again, two traits emerged side by side. integrity. kindness.”

You mulled over his words.

Integrity: the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles.

Kindness: the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate.

You didn’t feel like you had the right to be associated with something honest when you was still concealing things from Sans. And you hadn’t been very friendly when you first met the monsters. You’d been hateful and not at all kind and you had totally screwed moral principles.

“I don’t think that’s me, Sans. I’m not kind and I don’t have integrity.”

Sans scoffed. “but you are. you have showed so much kindness towards everyone i’ve seen you meet here. you’re incredibly compassionate and you always try to do the right thing. you stand up for what you believe in but you’re not closed-minded and you’re willing to let new facts change your mind, if you see reason in them.“

It was odd hearing Sans speak of you that way. He spoke almost with admiration but you weren’t sure you were something to be admired. You’d screwed up so many times and you still had so much more to learn. But you wanted to be better.

You watched the shimmering brilliant two colors dance around inside of your soul. As you’d moved closer you saw the tiny red lines plastered across your soul. Scars of what you’d been through. You remembered how the grief had almost consumed you and how it had felt like you would die.

How you almost wanted to die so you wouldn’t have to go on alone after having lost the people you loved the most in this world. But you had stayed determined and you’d listened to the voices of your family and kept going.

You hadn’t let the tragedy break you and your soul was proof of that. Suddenly, the scars didn’t seem so scary anymore.

“i’ve never quite seen a soul like this,” Sans commented, his eyes once again studying the soul floating over his palm.

“Well, that would make sense if you’ve never seen a duality soul, as you called it.”

“no, not that. i mean, yeah, that too but… your colors burn so brightly. for most people the soul dulls as the person becomes an adult and if i recall correctly especially duality souls are said to be even more dim because of their past trauma. but yours, it shines brightly. like you still have so much hope left. and even after the way the world has looked these past four years.”

He wasn’t exactly wrong, was he? You’d used studying to keep you occupy and your thoughts away from your personal tragedy. You had wanted to make something of yourself. You had wanted to make a positive impact on world somehow. You had wanted all of your struggles to be worth something.

Sans let go of your shoulder with his right hand and you’d actually forgotten that he’d had it on you for this long. He moved his hand towards your soul carefully. He looked almost hypnotized and his eye sockets had turned black and hollow. When he was just a couple of centimeters away, you called out his name and his hand stopped mid-air.

“sorry,” he said and shook his head and let his right hand drop into his lap.

“What was that?” you asked worriedly.

“prolonged exposure to a human soul can be tempting for someone like me. i manipulate souls so easily and if i were to touch it, i’d control the person. you.”

A shiver ran down you back but you trusted Sans, even if the monster was currently without his white pinpricks. Despite the slight sinister undertones in his words, he wouldn’t do that to you. He had warned you beforehand but you clearly hadn’t taken it very seriously.

“i forgot to tell you, if someone has hold of your soul, even without actually touching, like i do right now, they’ll feel compelled to obey you. do what you want. answer your questions.”

“Sans, I thought you were officially done with scaring me,” you said, trying to sound stern but it came out a little jittery.

If he could truly make you answer his questions, then you’d really put yourself in a more vulnerable position than you’d originally realized. Would he ask you where Frisk was? Would he break the trust you’d just begun to grant him in that way? Could you truly blame him if he did?

He was missing a family member. Would you have been able to keep yourself in check if the roles had been reversed? You deliberated internally and settled on the fact that you very much hoped that you would no matter how hard it would be to resist.

“this was a really dangerous request, doe. you’re really testing my control. you know how much i want frisk back and you serve up a perfect way for me to get what i want without actually hurting you.”

But he would hurt you, if he did this. Just like forming a friendship with Papyrus and then having to say goodbye had hurt. You’d let yourself trust Sans and if he betrayed that trust, it would hurt so much more than you were willing to admit.

“if i hadn’t let you into my home, into my brother’s life, if you hadn’t helped him, if you hadn’t made me care then i could do it without remorse. i understand the pull to give into dark impulses and move through life without attachments… it makes things easier but it also makes life worse. it makes life empty,” Sans said and his white pinpricks came back into his eyes and he looked apologetic now. “sorry.”

He moved his hands and you thought he might go to touch your soul but he just pushed it towards you until it settled back inside of your chest. When it came home, you felt like you were finally able to breathe after having sat with your heart in your throat the whole time.

You wondered if there wasn’t a time when Sans would suddenly turn scary momentarily, just when you thought you’d figured him out. You pressed your palm against your chest as if that would help any to guard you.

Sans could still kill you easily. He could just call out your soul and make you obey him. Monsters were scary creatures and you understood why humans feared magic when you were reminded on how it could be used.

“i’m sorry,” Sans said and sounded ashamed. “soul rays make me go slightly crazy. i didn’t mean to scare you.”

You were inclined to forgive him but you needed to know something first.

“Why didn’t you go through with it? Why didn’t you make me tell you what you think I know? After all this time, you could finally have your answer.”

“why didn’t you dust me when you had the chance?” Sans countered. “you didn’t even know me then.”

“Well, I suppose the integrity and kindness might have gotten in the way,” you said after a moment of thought. “But honestly, I didn’t want to hurt you, Sans.”

“and i didn’t want to make you do something you didn’t want. i’m sorry for kidnapping you. you have enough reason to hate me already. i don’t need to add to that list.”

“I don’t hate you,” you said automatically, impulsively but it was the truth.

Maybe you’d hated him in the beginning when he’d just been a terrifying monster that had kidnapped you. But you definitely didn’t hate him anymore. You would wish that you didn’t have to be exposed to his mood swings but you’d almost learnt to deal with that.

“why not?”

“You’re not the big, bad, strong, ruthless monster you want everyone to see when they look at you, Sans. You’re compassionate. You would do anything to protect the people you love and you’re extremely clever and perspective. And despite all the threats, which I would really appreciate if you dropped, you haven’t actually done much to hurt me. I’m leaving tomorrow and I need you to know that I _don’t_ hate you. I…”

You almost wanted to tack on another sentence. It was very late and you still felt so emotional after having your soul exposed but you held back. You’d already said enough.

“I asked to see my soul and you showed me. You warned me beforehand and I didn’t heed your warning properly. That’s on me. We’re good, Sans. I really don’t want to part enemies.”

“we were never really enemies, doe. you just thought so.”

“Friends then?” you asked and held out your hand for him to shake. He reached out and took it but surprised you by pulling you forward into an awkward hug. Your clasped hands were caught between you chests as Sans free hand came up around your shoulder and your free hand fell around his waist.

“i’m glad we’re on the same side.”

Were you? He was still a monster and you were still a human and you were still officially at war with each other. But you got what he meant. He wanted to end the war, as did you. You didn’t fear and hate him because he was a monster. And you hoped that you’d showed him that humans could be nice, just for the sake of it, without any hidden agendas.

“Me too, Sans.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what did you think? Did you think Sans made the right call in not asking about Frisk? Anyone been wondering what soul colour the reader has had? If you personally don't identify with either of these colours, I'm sorry but it's what works best for the story. This chapter was such fun to write and one of the scenes I had in mind back when I started the story but there had to be trust between Sans and the reader before they could get there. I'd love to know your thoughts. The whole duality soul and shatter lines are terminology I came up with - I hope you liked it.
> 
> And thank you so much for the birthday wishes (one of you even set an alarm to wish me it on my actual birthday). I'll get back to replying to comments soon but I've currently got pneumonia and I haven't been sleeping well because of coughing fits. But I love comment so much and I will be back to reply to everything! 
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday 19th of November 2017.


	16. A Hesitant Decision

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She was finally headed for the gates of New New Home to leave behind the monster city and the monsters who captured her. She just never imagined she would make the journey with such a heavy heart. Objectively, she couldn't have been luckier getting away like this but for some reason it didn't feel right.

You were just sitting in silence, neither of you wanting the moment to pass. You still felt exhausted from the manipulation of your soul and the slight fright Sans had subjected you to. Tomorrow, you’d leave and tomorrow was practically happening already.

Maybe it would be better if you just left early in the morning rather than stay for breakfast with the two skeletons. You weren’t sure you’d be able to handle saying goodbye to overly emotional Papyrus, if this past day had been any indication of how the youngest brother would feel when you finally left.

You weren’t as sure how Sans truly felt about you leaving because he was playing his cards close to his chest, or ribcage, as always. He kept on the grin, not letting it slip and reveal any weakness at present moment.

But you were in a good place right now. Maybe it was better if it ended like this instead of when the morning light broke.

“i’m heading off to bed,” Sans announced. “and doe, if you want to leave before we wake up, just head to the gate and ask to be let out. the royal guards know you’re free to leave.”

You weren’t sure how he’d seen right through your contemplations but the skeleton monster was much more perceptive than he gave on. You allowed yourself a fond smile. It would be difficult to leave Papyrus behind, who’d you’d come to care for like a good friend, but it would also be weird to leave Sans.

The two of you had a much more turbulent relationship and there had been times when he’d frightened you but it felt like it was in the past now. You’d come to greatly appreciate the side of Sans when he didn’t worry about cracking jokes but purely just spoke about the random things that came up in conversation. He had a reassuring presence and you didn’t know when you’d come to like so much.

“Thanks, Sans. For letting them know and everything else.”

Sans nodded and his permanent grin dropped a little. “goodnight, doe. it’s been a pleasure.”

His words left you floored and getting to sleep on the familiar sofa wasn’t easy anymore. You remembered the soft mattress that you’d woken up on this morning, with Sans’ hands gently resting on your body.

You would never have thought a monster could be gentle towards humans, nor care for them in any capacity. You’d been fed so much bullshit over the last four years and it pissed you off. However, you couldn’t let those thoughts fester.

When you returned, you’d be obliged to do the evaluation that everyone “rescued” from the clutches of monsters went through. At summer camp, you’d been told it was a safety protocol to make sure monsters hadn’t corrupted their prisoners. Now, you weren’t so sure anymore.

You forced your mind to quiet down as much as possible and got a few restless hours of sleep. When you woke, it was still dark outside but it was beginning to lighten in the horizon. If you moved now, town would be quiet and you could slip out without encountering anyone.

You’d spare yourself and the brothers a likely tearful goodbye. If Papyrus started crying again, you’d be sure to join him too. Sans didn’t seem like the crying type but you didn’t want the last thing you saw of him to be his sad frown.

It was better that they remembered you like you’d been yesterday, full of smiles and laughs.

Quietly, you gathered up your limited possessions and went to open the front door. The door clicked open without any problem but you hesitated in the doorway anyway. Sans was likely awake.

During one of your late night talks, he’d confessed he never slept much at night due the fear of nightmares. It was the reason he was so tired all the time and dozing off during the day.

“Goodbye, Sans,” you said to the empty living room. “You and your brother changed my life. I’m sad it has to end like this. Be safe and take care of each other, okay?”

You didn’t get a verbal response but the kitchen cupboard where you stored your tea, swung open and moved back and forward, almost as if waving. If you felt your eyes well up and your chest tighten, you did you best to hide it.

You moved out before you regretted your decision. Closing that door behind you were one of the hardest things you’d ever done and it still baffled you that your life had come to this. You were sad to be out of two monsters’ house and heading back to your fellow humans. It seemed wrong according to all the propaganda in your brain but the emotion felt genuine in your heart.

You made your way towards the entrance gates at a slow pace. You’d finally be leaving New New Home. You’d gotten a unique look into the monsters’ lifestyle and you knew so much information from Sans and Papyrus answering your questions.

You couldn’t let the government know any of it. You’d have to lie and play dumb and tell them that monsters kept you locked in that hotel room with minimal interactions. If they found out you’d stayed in the home of one of the most wanted monsters and even befriended him? You’d never be allowed to walk away, whether you were labeled a monster sympathizer or not.

You were so caught up in your own thoughts that you almost tripped over something on the ground. You hurried to correct yourself and spun around to see what you’d tripped over. To your surprise, it wasn’t a what. It was a who.

“Sorry, I didn’t see you there,” you apologized.

It was a monster with the appearance of a sheet ghost, though the big eyes were very expressive and the monster was wearing headphones.

“that’s okay… most people don’t notice my existence… it’s not the first time i’ve been stepped on…” the ghost monster replied deep and slow voice.

You wracked your brain for when Sans had been describing the monsters in the city and at first nothing came up but then it dawned on you.

“You must be Napstablook?”

“you? know my name? what… how do you know my name? strangers never know my name…” Napstablook replied and surprise overtook the sad emotion in the monster’s face.

It broke your heart to hear how down the monster sounded. You left early to avoid an emotional encounter and yet you’d stumbled right upon another one.

“I’m sure many people and monsters alike know your name, Napstablook. Why are you lying on the ground this early in the morning?”

“family tradition… and it makes everything quiet down… my music helps but since mettaton has been taken i’ve been feeling… worse…”

You frowned at the mention of the famous robot monster that you’d watched several films of with Papyrus and Sans, even if the latter didn’t seem to like him much. Of course, you’d known about Mettaton beforehand. Everyone knew about the monster who’d instantly gotten so many reality shows and went around performing songs as well. He was a star within just a year but then the war had broken lose and he’d become a more serious reporter on monster and human conflicts.

“What do you mean Mettaton has been taken?” you asked.

“you humans… you took him… he’s been gone for a year… we can’t find him and now everyone is more occupied with looking for frisk… i miss frisk too… they were kind to me…”

Your heart ached at the mention of the ghost monster missing not one but two friends. But how could humans have had Mettaton for a year? Surely, you’d have known about that. True, it had been a long time since you’d remembered seeing clips of Mettaton on television but the channels had begun cutting off his interrupting broadcast ever since they began. They hadn’t been interested in featuring one of the monsters humanity was at war with.

“Are you sure humans have him? Napstablook?” you asked as the ghost monster that seemed to be dozing off.

“yeah… he sent a distress message to alphys’ lab before he got taken… you’ve got him…”

It had become evident that the government didn’t tell the public a lot of things but hiding the fact that they’d napped the literal monster poster child seemed like a different stake. You could objectively see why they’d probably be thrilled to have someone like Mettaton. While a monster in spirit, his body was a work of science, a work of the Royal Scientist Alphys. If they could access the monster by controlling his wiring, they could potentially turn Mettaton against his own kind.

Had that been what they’d been doing? You felt sickened to your stomach.

“I have to get going. I’m sorry,” you told Napstablook as you stepped around the monster who was still lying on the ground.

“no problem… everybody always leave… either by force or by free will… no one ever stays… it’s okay…”

You wanted to argue against that but you were leaving. You had always known that you couldn’t stay here in a monster city while a war was going on. You couldn’t even stay when you had started to form attachments to monsters here.

It would only end with you getting hurt. Sans had warned you of it repeatedly and you’d finally decided to heed his advice. No matter how hollow and sad it made you feel.

You reached the gates and tried to push away Napstablook’s voice from your mind. You couldn’t deal with this. You had to mentally prepare to deal with what was outside of those walls.

Humans couldn’t get close to the entrance as all electronics shut off and monsters patrolled the area to make sure no one got too close. But a little further out, you’d find human camps and they’d take you in as a survivor of monster kidnapping.

You were, technically, but it had stopped feeling like that somewhere along the line when you started to care about the monsters you were supposed to hate.

Two Royal Guards stood by the doors when you reached the wall.

“Greetings, human. State your business,” one of them said.

“I’m… I’m leaving. Did Sans talk to you?” you asked and had trouble meeting the gaze of the guard who’d spoken. You felt small and it felt wrong to leave this place.

You knew where Frisk was likely to be held and Mettaton might be there as well. You had knowledge that could help the monsters you’d come to think of as friends as well as a human and a monster both who undoubtedly wanted to get back to their friends and family.

You felt like utter garbage for running away with that information.

“Of course. Sans informed us days ago that you might be making an exit,” the other guard replied.

“You’re free to go now or at a later time. Only, remember that once you exit, you will not be allowed reentry. Humans are only allowed to enter the premise with a chaperone,” the first guard added.

If you walked through those gates, you’d truly be leaving all the monsters behind. Sans granted you safe passage and he hadn’t tried to get the information you held out of you. He’d been so close to making you spill the beans but he’d reigned himself in.

It dawned on you then how much that must have cost him.

You were just a random human, who had information the monsters wanted. Undyne had been willing to excuse torture as a last option, at least in the beginning, if you couldn’t be convinced otherwise. Sans should have been willing to do the same, based on all the cold-heartedness he was described to have.

But you knew that wasn’t true. He wasn’t cold hearted at all.

“Do you wish to exit, human?” one of the guards asked.

Did you wish to exit? No. You wanted to go back and talk to Sans and understand why all this was making you feel so confused. But at the same time you knew that you had to leave.

If you stayed, you’d open your mouth. You’d confess state secrets to the monsters. You’d be putting innocent humans at risk if the monsters decided to storm the military base. Sans had reassured you that they weren’t murderous but he also admitted that they did use deadly force, if necessary.

Any human death, which would be a result of the information you had, would fall on you. You might not be the one pulling the trigger, or more accurately wielding the magic, but if you set things in motion, then it would still be your responsibility.

“I need to go. I can’t stay here,” you said out loud without meaning to.

Something softened in the expression of both of the guards and they exchanged a look.

“Humans do make their home here. We don’t discriminate,” said one of them.

“Sans seemed fond of you. You will likely be allowed to stay with him and his brother,” said the other.

Your chest tightened again. Why were they being so nice? They looked like the same guards who’d been with Sans and Undyne when they’d attacked you but they seemed kinder now, softer somehow - almost as if the tough exterior was only hiding the soft core.

But you couldn’t stay. All the logical reasons were spinning around in your head. The only reason for staying would be because you wanted to. That wasn’t good enough.

“No, I have to leave. But… thank you,” you said and moved towards the door.

The guards stepped aside, letting you have your space as you went to push the doors. They were slightly heavy but that only seemed fitting. It wasn’t an easy task to leave this place and you did so with a heavy heart.

You pushed and the double doors opened slowly. When the gap was big enough, you should have walked right through but your feet wouldn’t move. Your hands trembled as they pressed against the weight of the doors. Just a few more steps and your decision would be irreversible.

You’d have left without a scratch on your person and without giving any vital information to the monsters. It was more than you could have ever hoped for when they captured you. You’d even gained a lot of information about how they lived and their strengths and weaknesses. You’d be a human success story.

Those evaluation people would love you but you’d hate yourself if anything you gave them left to your new friends being hurt.

Information was more dangerous than one could imagine.

Your heart was hammering in your chest, seemingly trying to push you over the edge. For a moment, you thought you might have a heart attack.

If you left and gave the government information on Sans, Papyrus and the others, whether you gave the information willingly or not, it would put them in horrible danger and maybe even be the cause of their demise.

If you stayed and told Sans about the place where Frisk might be, you’d be putting innocent human lives on the line and trusting that the monsters could accomplish the rescue mission without casualties.

Life was all about hard choices but you’d never imagined you’d have to make one like this.

You groaned loudly as you pulled your hands off the doors and stepped backwards into New New Home. You couldn’t do it. Your training mantra from camp was spinning in your head but you weren’t paying any attention to it.

This whole thing had stared with a chance encounter with Frisk. Poor, young, innocent human Frisk who just wanted to go back to their family and you’d been standing in the way for way too long. It would end with the teenage ambassador too. Only when you’d helped get them back would you be able to breathe without feeling the guilt.

“Sorry, I’ll… I’m… I have to go,” you muttered to the guards and turned on your heels and started sprinting back towards the skeleton brothers’ home. You were running while your lungs burnt and you only slowed down when you passed Napstablook who was still lying on the ground staring at the early signs of the sunrise.

It reminded you of how Sans had told you that every single night at least one monster came out to appreciate the night sky and the fact that they weren’t trapped underground anymore. It made you check your privilege.

“i thought you had to… go?” Napstablook asked as you stopped beside them heaving to catch your breath.

“I… I was… but not anymore… I have things I need, need to get done first. I’ll try to get Mettaton back… I’ll try to help how I can,” you promised, huffing out breaths in between your words.

Confusion overtook the Napstablook’s gloomy appearance and then it morphed into something akin to joy, even if it was still hid behind gloomy skies.

“that… that would be good…”

You barked out a loud laugh, high on adrenalin from running and finally making a decision that had been weighing on your for a long time. You’d thought you’d settled on it in the beginning: there was no way you’d tell the monsters anything - not your name and not anything useful about Frisk’s possible whereabouts.

Oh, how times had changed in the span of a few weeks.

“No promises but I’m done sitting on my best hand. It’s time for action on my behalf.”

Napstablook nodded and went back to focusing on the sky, so you kept moving, running at a more reasonable pace now. You still reached the house that had started to feel familiar and safe soon enough.

You hesitated at the door, your heart going a mile a minute, only partly due to the physical exertion. How would they react to you being back?

Would Sans be mad you came with the information now weeks after he’d initially been asking for it? Would Papyrus be able to understand what was going on and would he hate you if he knew you’d been potentially sitting with the key to reunite them with Frisk this whole time but chosen to keep quiet about it?

Facing them and their reactions scared you but you felt in your gut that you were making the right choice. You just had to go for it.

You forewent knocking and walked right in. The entire ground floor was still empty and your eyes fell on the blanket and pillow you’d folded on the sofa after you’d had the worst night’s sleep as of yet.

“doe?” Sans asked and appeared in front of you with no warning at all.

You squealed and moved back, not having expected him to be just there in front of you. You were well on the way to falling on your ass when magic took hold of you, catching your fall and making you stand up again.

Sans was in his usual hoodie and shorts and pink slippers but his hoodie was just loosely chugged on and remained unzipped and his ribcage as bare underneath.

“I’m staying, Sans,” you said when you found your voice but your words just make the skeleton monster frown. “Not like permanently like that but I mean, I’m not leaving and going back to… I’m not just going to waltz out of here after everything and go pretend that I hate your guts when I don’t.”

“me and pap don’t have any guts to hate,” Sans joked and pulled slightly on his hoodie to reveal more of his seemingly empty ribcage. You knew his soul was in there and he acted as if he had lungs as well, so you had a feeling everything was just invisible but that was a topic for another time, even if it fascinated you greatly. However, Sans mostly made jokes when he was nervous or trying to lighten a situation, so you rushed on to reassure him.

“No, I mean… I’ve been horrible to you by staying quiet. In the beginning, I did it because I was scared of you and hateful. But even as I learnt more about you, I still didn’t feel like I could open up because I would be betraying my people in a state of war. I’d be committing treason. I’d be endangering innocent lives.”

“doe, what are you trying to say?”

“When you asked me where Frisk went, I told you I didn’t know. That’s not entirely true. I don’t know for sure but I have a pretty good guess. And I didn’t tell you ‘cause I was scared you’d leave havoc and murder in your wake.”

“i told you, we don’t kill in cold-blood,” Sans argued and his entire body was tense now that he’d sensed you were about to tell him what he’d been wanting you to say this whole time.

“No, but you do kill if it’s necessary to protect the ones you love. If I tell you, Sans, the rescue plan has to be without human casualties. I know it’s war and casualties might objectively be excusable but they’re not to me. If I tell you, you have to promise me, really promise me, that you won’t kill anyone while rescuing Frisk. Oh, and we’ll have to look for Mettaton too.”

“promise? we? mettaton?”

“I hope you’re not just repeating words you don’t understand, Sans. I talked to Napstablook and learnt that Mettaton was missing. Why didn’t you tell me that? There’s a good chance they’re in the same spot as Frisk.”

“it didn’t seem important at the time. you didn’t want to help. but if they’re both there, we’ll save both, of course. alphys would never forgive me otherwise.”

“Good, now promise me that you won’t allow any human deaths,” you said and walked up close to Sans and held out your hand.

He moved back slightly, eyeing your hand as if it was a poisonous weapon rather than the want of a handshake.

“you’ll only tell me if i promise no human casualties? doe, you must realize things go wrong and situations become dire…”

“I know. I know it’s a restricting condition. I know it’ll make it more difficult for you, Sans, but it has to be possible. Don’t make me tell you without the promise. Please.”

“i wouldn’t _make_ you, doe. we’ve been over this. ”

“No, not like that,” you said but smiled at his reassurance that he wouldn’t make you do anything you didn’t want to. “As in, I’ve run away from the guards and the gates to come sprinting in here. I’ve already made my decision, Sans, but I’m just asking you for an olive branch. Help me feel less horrible about putting my fellow humans in danger. I’m doing this either way. Frisk shouldn’t have to be held against their will and I’m sorry it took me this long to see that. Prejudice and misconceptions does a number on your head.”

Sans seemed to ponder your words very carefully and he didn’t look happy about adding the no casualties clause. You knew it wasn’t because he’d go out of his way to murder humans he encountered but if he was pushed into a corner, he did use his powers with deadly force and you were taking that away from him.

But then he moved his hand forward, slowly and closed his fingers around yours. You closed your fingers around his skeleton hand and you shook three times and afterwards you lingered with your intertwined hands in the air. The structure of his bones felt odd pressed against your palm but oddly, familiar and calming too.

“i promise no human causalities while we rescue frisk.”

“I’m trusting you with this, Sans. I’m still worried that I’m messing up but it feels like the right call. I’m sorry I’ve been so stubborn.”

“hey, i never thought you’d tell me. you have that look in your eye as if no one can make you do anything that you don’t want to. all throughout these weeks, you kept that glint in your eye. your true soul color might not be red but you are a very determined human, doe.”

“SANS?” sounded a voice from the hallway upstairs and you could hear the fall of Papyrus’ feet. “WHAT ARE THE TWO OF YOU DOING? WE CAN’T WASTE TIME HOLDING HANDS! DOE IS LEAVING TODAY AND YOU BETTER UPGRADE TO HUGS AT THE VERY LEAST.”

Papyrus came down the stairs and pulled you away from Sans and into a tight hug. You huffed out a laugh and squeezed Papyrus back with all the platonic affection you felt for younger skeleton, who seemed to be shaking slightly.

“I WILL MISS YOU SO MUCH.”

“Pap, we’ve changed the plans. I’m staying for a little while. I decided to tell Sans about that thing and we’re going to figure out how to get Frisk back,” you said and you pulled away from the hug.

“YOU’RE STAYING? AND YOU’LL HELP FIND FRISK? SEE, SANS? I TOLD YOU SHE WOULDN’T LEAVE US AND WITH HER HELP YOU LAZYBONES MIGHT ACCOMPLISH SOMETHING! SHE IS A TRUE FRIEND!”

“Ah, Pap actually the reason I was here in the first place…” you started to explain hesitantly while not being ready to tell the pure skeleton monster about your concealment of information. But Sans interrupted you before you could go on.

“why don’t you make an omelet for breakfast, pap? you’ve learnt how to do those to perfection, i bet.”

That spurred Papyrus on, who went on a rant while marching off to the kitchen to meet Sans’ “challenge”. You sent Sans a sideway glance.

“he doesn’t need to know,” Sans said, always ready to shield his brother from the harsh reality of life.

You wanted to argue against it because he couldn’t keep trying to protect Papyrus like this but it wasn’t your call to make. You should just be happy Sans was taking it so well and you didn’t have to face Papyrus’ judgment yet.

“We’ll have to tell him eventually, Sans,” you whispered. “About me keeping information about Frisk and you kidnapping me. I know you don’t want him to know but you can’t keep him in the dark forever.”

“just… not yet, okay? please?”

You nodded, even though you didn’t agree. “Fine, now give me a paper and I’ll write down the address and we’ll start planning.”

Sans sent a block and a pencil flying right into your hands and then smiled brightly. You started scribbling down the address from memory.

“i’m glad you came back, doe,” Sans confessed, which made you more happy than you were willing to admit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you think? Did you think the reader would leave? Are you happy she went back and finally spilled the beans? Also Napstablook finally made an appearance - they're one of my favourite characters from the game and obviously deserved to be incorporated. How do you think they will go about saving Frisk and will Sans be able to keep his promise? As always, I would love to know your thoughts. 
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday the 26th of November.


	17. A Collaborative Effort

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She had finally told Sans where Frisk might have been held but that was just the beginning of it. Now they had to figure out how to pull of a rescue mission from one of the most secure POCAM centers in the world without anyone getting hurt.

Papyrus made breakfast and it actually turned out to be a decent omelet. You were perhaps more proud than what was socially acceptable but it was wonderful to see how Papyrus finally seemed to get the hang of cooking a bit better.

When you’d written down the address and showed it to Sans, you’d started explaining where you had gotten the information and when you finally finished, Sans looked deep in thought. He was frowning, staring down at the address and the notes you’d jotted down.

For a split second your mind went to a dark place, as it crossed your mind that maybe now you’d be done for. Sans would throw you out or maybe even kill you because he had the information he’d wanted all along.

It was the information you’d been kidnapped for and now he’d finally gotten what he’d wanted all along. The insecurities tried to settle in the core of your being but you pushed them away.

Everything that had passed between you couldn’t have been a lie or a master plan. You refused to believe that.

“i can’t believe you actually told me,” he said, tracing his phalange over the corner of the paper. You had finished breakfast and Papyrus was tidying up and had refused any help because the two of you should get on with finding Frisk.

“Well, like I said I’m not absolutely certain but it’s our best bet.”

“our?” Sans asked and there was that look of complete wonder again. He didn’t look like that often but lately you’d managed to pull out that expression quite a few times now.

“Yes, _our_ best bet, Sans. You didn’t think I’d just hike back out the gates after I’d told you, did you? I want to help Frisk.”

“that’s not your responsibility. we can take it from here. you don’t have to be more involved.”

“You know as well as I do that I could be an asset to this rescue mission. And frankly, I do feel responsible for what happened to Frisk. I saw them, Sans. I talked to them and I didn’t put up as much of a fight as I should have when the POCAM guards took Frisk away.”

“as much of a fight? you fought at all?” he asked but there was no judgment in his voice, despite his words. His tone remained neutral and curious.

You’d been discussing the POCAM guards just before breakfast because the address predictably lead to a POCAM facility, only it was their top secret one which wasn’t listed on anything officially and one only got to know the location if you had a high enough security clearance. Or one was nosy around incompetent colleagues, like you’d been.

“Yeah, I tried. I got a whiteboard in so we could communicate easier since my sign language isn’t great. And when the guards burst through the door, angered, I tried to argue that they were a minor and had rights but…”

“they were marked as a monster sympathizer, which instantly mean you lose all your precious human rights,” Sans finished for you.

You nodded. “It’s unfair and the guards scared me. They threatened my job and my degree, which I know might seem silly but if I lost all that I have worked for…” you paused and let out a sigh. “It seemed like a bigger deal the time. Either way, I’m probably doomed. When I return, I’ll have to go through an evaluation and briefings and they’ll probably see through how I feel about monsters now.”

“and how’s that?” Sans asked, sounding a bit worried.

“You’re just like us. You make mistakes and rash decisions but you’re not manipulative killers or vicious animals. What we’re being told about you are lies. Even a low-grade technician would probably see through me.”

Sans suddenly look like he got an idea and perked up.

“where do they brief humans?”

“Err… I don’t know? I’ve never really been too focused on that. But probably at the local POCAM center.”

“anyway you could get interrogated at their secret base?”

“I sincerely doubt it,” you said but then thought about it. “Unless… if I had a reason to be there. Like if I had a personal history with someone they were already keeping there, like Frisk. If they thought I was on their side, if I brought new intel forward and they trusted my loyalties, then they might let me in.”

“then that’s our in.”

You kept discussing with Sans and Papyrus eventually joined you, even if it wasn’t something Sans was thrilled about. He wanted to hide his little brother as far away from the action as possible but Papyrus didn’t back down. This was about Frisk and it was clear he cared very much for the teenager.

Even when Sans’ glared at him with hollow eye sockets in a manner that sent chills down _your_ spine, Papyrus just stared back at his older brother and told him that he was still doing it.

Sans eventually allowed Papyrus to be part of the discussion but you could see he was already plotting how he could keep him as far away from the action as possible. He probably still felt responsible for Papyrus’ injury, even if the skeleton was now sporting a fully functioning hand, thanks to your successful scientific endeavor.

“WE ARE GOING TO NEED UNDYNE AND ALPHYS’ HELP TOO,” Papyrus said. “UNDYNE IS ONE OF OUR BEST FIGHTERS AND ALPHYS CAN HACK THE BUILDING AND HELP US THAT WAY.”

You didn’t want to involve the other two monsters. Alphys had cuffed and muted you the last time you’d gone to ask for her help. Undyne still frightened you a little bit but you’d be willing to look past that. It seemed like you’d reached a silent alliance the last time you’d met.

“I don’t think Alphys will want to help if she knows I’m involved, Pap. She’d hardly talk to me when Sans and I went to see her.”

“NONSENSE. IT’S FOR FRISK. OF COURSE, SHE’LL HELP.”

You smiled at Papyrus’ naivety and you so desperately wanted him to be right. But you could still see how Alphys had looked at you with fear and anger mixed together in a dangerous concoction. She would never agree to be involved in a team effort if you were on the team.

“maybe undyne could talk her into it. if you could get into the building, find frisk and mettaton and she could hack into it and keep an eye out for guards and then undyne and i could storm in and create a distraction while you get away.”

“I’M COMING TOO,” Papyrus said stubbornly.

You had to admit, it was a better plan to have Undyne and Alphys’ skills too. You weren’t even sure one would be able to hack into a secret POCAM base but Alphys seemed intelligent and if she had a talent for hacking, then maybe it could be done.

“we can always try and ask if they’ll help us,” Sans said and you were somewhat baffled that Sans hadn’t suggest that you bow out. Sure, you were an important piece in the plan you’d come up with but you were also a liability. You were a human who’d worked for the very government you were now planning to attack. The others on the team were all monsters and had known each other for years.

You’d been here for three weeks, most of the time against your will.

“WE SHOULD GO SEE THEM,” Papyrus said and jumped up and did a power pose. “OH, AND SHOULD WE TELL TORIEL?”

“no,” Sans said sternly, leaving no room for discussion.

Papyrus looked like he wanted to open his mouth and argue but he stayed silent when you put a hand on his shoulder. You couldn’t be sure exactly why Sans spoke like that but you knew him well enough to know when he couldn’t be convince of something. You still hadn’t gotten a chance to ask him about how he and Toriel knew each other but you knew there was more to learn.

And you could see why you shouldn’t tell a mother that you were going to rescue her adoptive child on the off chance that everything blew up in your face, which is might very well still do. You’d always been secretly frightened by POCAM guards and planning a rescue from their secret facility? It was suicide mission, at least in relation to your status in the human society.

This wouldn’t just leave you unable to get a job. You’d be marked a traitor and either imprisoned for life or sentenced to death if you were caught. But there was no turning back now. The wheels had unknowingly been set in motion three weeks ago and you couldn’t go back, even if you wanted to.

Papyrus called Undyne on the way to Alphys’ laboratory and asked her to meet the three of you outside. Papyrus was being purposely cryptic on the phone and you could hear the frustration in Undyne’s voice through the line. She never was a quiet one.

And she looked pissed off and on edge when she greeted you outside of the laboratory.

“You actually got her to tell you? I thought you were leaving?” Undyne interrupted as Sans had begun to explain the situation.

“I was leaving but then I came back and told him,” you said.

Undyne’s graze was full of suspicion. “And how do we know it’s not a trap, huh? Three weeks and suddenly, bam, you just tell Sans. It doesn’t make sense.”

“undyne, i trust her information.”

“SO DO I. DOE WOULD NEVER LIE TO HER FRIENDS,” Papyrus said and clapped a hand on your shoulder. You wondered if he hadn’t caught on that you’d had the information the whole time and concealed it or if he was just ignoring it for the safety of peace and the mission.

“Fine,” Undyne growled. “But Alphys isn’t going to be happy about this. Let me hear the whole plan then.”

Sans and Papyrus took turns speaking while you remained quiet as you made your way into the laboratory. Sans swiped his identity card and the doors opened obediently. It was easy to forget he technically worked here too, even if you were pretty sure he hadn’t been here in weeks, except for your visit to have Alphys go over the notes for restoring Papyrus’ hand.

“It’s a solid plan, I guess. If the humans believe that Doe hates us. And what exactly will she have to tell them to gain their trust?”

“as little as possible,” Sans said. “oh, and we cannot use deadly force, at all.”

“WHAT? Are you shitting me?” Undyne shouted and then glared at you in a way that brought up the part of you that still secretly feared Undyne might snap and attack you. “You agreed to this, Sans? She made you, didn’t she? Do you realize what this might mean?” Undyne addressed the last part to you.

“undyne, it’s…”

“No, Sans, it’s not fine. I’m sure she knows by now that we don’t just murder humans but if we do use deadly force, _if necessary_. What if you are pressed into a corner and it’s the only way? She’ll get us killed by getting you to promise that!”

“It has to be possible,” you pressed.

“It’s stupid and rash and…” Undyne was hissing and then you heard Alphys’ voice call out as the dinosaur monster stepped out of the elevator.

“Sans, I saw you logged in, what are…” she froze when she spotted you and then her face fell into something akin to betrayal when she saw that you were surrounded by Sans, Papyrus and Undyne. Undyne seemed to deflate, topic dropped, as she focused on her girlfriend and the task at hand.

“Alphy, we’re…” Undyne began to speak in a soft tone you’d never heard her use before but Alphys still cut her off rudely.

“I-I told you last time, S-Sans. No uncuffed h-humans in here. I-I will not stand for this!” Alphys said and was practically fuming.

“Honey, we’re here because…”

“No, I can’t believe that you let this get so far, Undyne. Isn’t it the human you talked about strangling until she coughed up the information on Frisk’s whereabouts? Isn’t it the human you ridiculed Sans for being so soft on? Isn’t it the human you said would cause unpredictable trouble?”

It hurt a little that Undyne had spoken about you like that but it didn’t really come as a surprise. Undyne even looked a little guilty to have her previous words thrown in her face in front of you. Sans looked downright furious and Papyrus just glanced around like he wasn’t sure which one to try and calm down first.

You kept your mouth shut. Last time you’d been here, it had been evident that Alphys would never listen to you. You had to depend on the other three monsters to fight for you, even if you didn’t like it.

Alphys and Undyne got into a shouting match that Papyrus tried his best to break up, but the lovers didn’t pay much attention anything other than airing their frustrations.

Sans moved to stand beside you and it felt like it was a preemptive move to be ready to protect you, in case you’d need it.

“I’m messing all of this up,” you whispered under your breath as you saw how Undyne and Alphys fought verbally and Papyrus looked more and more flustered at their curses.

“no, it’s not your fault. you just want to help and we will need you. alphys need to get over herself.”

“You’re being unfair, Sans,” you said and you weren’t really sure why you were advocating for the person who seemed to hate your guts. “She is scared. She hides in anger to not let herself be vulnerable. It’s a coping mechanism and right now she feels like you’re all ganging up on her. She did look over the notes for Pap’s hand. She wants to help but… all of her instincts tell her not to trust humans. They murdered her king, blinded her girlfriend and hurt so many of her friends. It makes sense.”

“you never fail to surprise me,” Sans said as he left out a soft chuckle. “she wants you at best out of here, at worst hurt and you still respect her point of view. did your instincts tell you not to trust monsters?”

It was not the place to be having this conversation with Undyne and Alphys screaming at each other but you’d learnt to take whatever moment you could get with Sans. If you postponed it, the openness and trust wouldn’t be the same.

“Yeah. I’ve been told for four years that you monsters were dangerous and would hurt me if I ever happened upon one of your kind. It’s taken a lot of work for me to change my point of view.”

Sans nodded and then he took a deep breath before the blue light flickered to life in his left eye and Undyne and Alphys was caught in a vague glow and the words died in their throats.

This was one of the reasons that you should still be scared of Sans. He was so damn powerful and you continuously forgot it.

“sorry but i need you to stop screaming. you love each other. you fell for each other’s passion but this is too much. i’m sorry we dropped by unannounced, alph. but we have a likely location for frisk and we need your help to hack into the place.”

“YES, DOE WILL GO IN UNDERCOVER AND LOCATE FRISK AND METTATON AND THEN YOU’LL HELP GET US IN AND EVERYONE OUT AS WELL. WE NEED YOUR HELP, FRIEND,” Papyrus said and pulled his best puppy dog eyes.

The blue glow left Undyne and Alphys and their posture went from rigid to more relaxed. Undyne was glaring daggers at Sans for his blatant use of power but she didn’t’ say anything. Instead, she turned towards her girlfriend.

“I _do_ love you, Alphys. More than I’ve ever loved anyone but that little punk Frisk is family. You know it and we need your help to get them back. And Mettaton might be there too and I know you’re worried sick about him. This might be the perfect chance to get them back and then the original plan can continue. We can set things right, even if the plan is far from perfect.”

“B-but, Undyne! We c-can’t trust a human!” Alphys argued and cast a wary glance your way.

You stepped forward, trying to look as small and non-threatening as possible and yet, Alphys still leapt and stood behind Undyne to use her as a shield. Perhaps pity shouldn’t have been the first emotion going through you but it was. You were saddened that Alphys had become so scared of humans.

Sans had told you how Alphys had loved humans before, been beyond fascinated with them and she wanted so desperately to befriend them. She’d hated that Asgore had asked for human souls to be captured and done her best to try and help the humans who fell down the Underground. According to Sans, she’d absolutely adored Frisk.

At least that was up until the explosion that hurt her friends and started the war and showed her the cruel side of humanity.

“I’m sorry, Alphys,” you said in a gentle voice. “I’m sorry for all the bad experiences you have had with humans. I get it’s difficult to remain calm when your instincts are ringing alarm bells inside of your skull. But I promise you; I want to help. Before I came here, my instincts told me monsters were to be feared but I was wrong.”

“SHE FIXED MY HAND!” Papyrus contributed and pulled off his glove and showed her the slightly glowing right hand. “GOOD AS NEW.”

He flexed it and Alphys looked fascinated and stepped up to examine it.

“Undyne told me but this… it’s amazing. The n-notes, they were… good, human. You’re clever but that just make you m-more dangerous,” Alphys said as she turned Papyrus hand over in her own two small clawed hands.

“she had the chance to kill me before,” Sans announced and the three other monsters tensed and looked at you with shocked and horrified expressions. Alphys scuttled behind Undyne again.

“I…”

“had a blade pressed to my vertebrae. could have totally dusted me. this was just before i took her home, pap.”

“WHY WOULD YOU DO SUCH A THING HUMAN? I KNOW SANS IS ANNOYING BUT…”

“it’s wasn’t her fault, pap. she didn’t come here out of her own free will. we took her without asking.”

“SANS! HOW DARE YOU DO THAT? YOU CAN’T DO THAT! HUMANS ARE OUR FRIENDS!”

Papyrus looked absolutely horrified and you felt like everything was falling apart around you but at least you wouldn’t have any secrets anymore.

“but the point is, she didn’t. she should have killed me; an evil monster that kidnapped her. but she didn’t. that’s why i never pressed her for information after that, undyne. i realized that our desperate act was misplaced and wrong but… it was too late to turn back. so i thought i could show her that we were okay and she would see it like frisk had.”

You were speechless. You’d always wondered why Sans had taken you home to his and Papyrus’ house but you’d never dared to ask. You had been worried that it was just an extreme manipulative ploy. It had been done to change your mind, but not in the way you’d feared.

“So you’re s-saying she pulled away from hurting you? V-voluntarily?”

Sans nodded and looked at you for the first time since he had stopped Alphys and Undyne’s screaming match. He looked a bit resigned but hopeful.

“I didn’t want to hurt him. I just wanted a way out of here,” you explained. “But when I realized that I might kill him, then I… I couldn’t do it.”

“I-if you just wanted out of here, why are you s-still here now? Sans said you were f-free to go. You f-fixed Papyrus’ hand.”

It was something you’d asked yourself a lot and you hadn’t really settled on a definite answer.

“I met Frisk before I came here and… I should have done something more to help them. I didn’t because I was a coward but this is my chance to make it right. It just took me a little while to see that.”

“Y-you really just want to help save Frisk and Mettaton?” Alphys asked and for the first time since you’d walked in, she met your eyes, even if her entire body was shaking.

“Yes. I just want to help.”

Alphys hesitated and you felt like the other four of you held your breaths.

“What building is it?” she asked and there was a tentative smile on her face.

You instantly felt like a huge weight had been lifted off your shoulders. Alphys clearly still didn’t like humans in general, but she was willing to work with you for the greater good. Perhaps, you could show her that you truly just wanted to help. You wanted what all of them did. You wanted peace between humans and monsters.

It seemed only natural that it started with human and monster alliances.

“LET’S GET STARTED!” Papyrus announced and excitedly clapped his hands, as if you were about to build a playground rather than make an elaborate plan to break two loved ones out of a highly secure building.

A little enthusiasm might do you good, so you didn’t complain. Amazingly, the five of you worked really well with each other. It was easy to bounce ideas off of each other and with Alphys and Undyne’s help you improved the initial plan.

You didn’t like that so much of it depended on you being able to convince the humans that you needed to be debriefed at a secure location or that in order for them to trust you, you would likely have to prove that you had gained valuable information about the monsters that you now considered your friends.

There was way too many variables for your liking but Sans, Undyne and Papyrus would come out to a location near the secret facility and Alphys would be reachable by a little earpiece disguised as a ring until you’d need it.

It took a whole day to sort out everything, most of which Alphys spent hacking into the building as best she could. More time would have been ideal but Frisk had already been missing for months and Mettaton for over a year and it was undetermined how long they might have been kept at the secret base. However, you’d heard stories and knew that was not a place anyone wanted to be, unless you were a human working there.

So time was of the essence. The following day, everything would be set in motion and there was no turning back now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... a lot of secrets revealed in this chapter! What did you think? I'm so happy to write Alphys again and the way the reader can interact with the monsters now. The scene in the laboratory was really fun to write even if it's a lot to juggle five different characters chatting together. I hope you liked this chapter and as always I would love any feedback.
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday 3rd of December and 1st advent. I'm not ready for it to be December but time doesn't seem to care.


	18. A Fake Escape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Staging an escape from "monster imprisonment" and getting captured by POCAM guards was easy enough. Now, it was up to her to convince the humans that her loyalties had not changed and she wasn't planning on breaking out Frisk and Mettaton, if she could even find them.

You did not have a good feeling about this. It felt like there was something electric in the air, or maybe it was just the anticipation feeling palpable. You let your eyes survey the team of monsters that you would be working with. This could so easily go wrong and you’d all be hurt.

As usual, you’d had a late night tea session with Sans, but you’d reverted back to the comfortable silence over the small talk chats that had become your custom. Only this time, you had chosen to sit in the middle of the sofa, right next to Sans, with you knee resting against this femur after you’d pulled your legs up under you. It had felt nice and like a world of difference from last time.

You’d actually fallen asleep while he’d still been sitting there but when you woke up the following morning, he’d been gone and you had a blanket covering you. Papyrus had been the one to wake you and since then you’d been running around, going over plans, gathering supplies and getting ready to teleport to a spot near the secret base.

You had decided that you were to be found near the secret POCAM center to increase the chances of the humans finding you taking you directly there. The monsters apparently had safe houses all over the world and you’d be using the two closest to the secret base in your plan.

The one just 4 miles away would be staged as the place where you’d been held for a while. And the one 11 miles out would be the actual base for the monsters while you went undercover.

Dogamy and Dogaressa had been recruited too and joined your rescue mission. It had been almost two weeks since you’d seen the dog monsters that had been bringing you food in the hotel room and it was odd to get reacquainted with them.

They had greeted you like an old friend and made it adamantly clear that they were ready to help and support you. It was another nice change.

You gathered in the laboratory, much to Alphys’ annoyance. Everyone had a backpack with different stuff and Sans started teleporting away with the monsters one by one to the base of operations.

He took Undyne first, then Dogamy and then Dogaressa. He was only gone ten seconds or so before he reappeared but you still felt the unease grow as the group grew smaller and smaller. Alphys kept throwing your side-glances.

When Sans reappeared in front of you, Papyrus and Alphys, he turned his focus solely on the dinosaur monster.

“i’ll take pap now but alph, she’s on our side. don’t do anything stupid.”

“SEE YOU LATER, ALPHYS! OR RATHER HEAR YOU LATER,” Papyrus said, pure excitement in his voice as he tapped the side of his head where a little microphone was taped on.

The two skeletons disappeared and suddenly the air felt charged with magic. It was the same sensation of when Sans had used his powers to teleport you or showed you his attacks or Undyne’s spear had been coming directly towards you. You looked over at Alphys, while tugging uneasily and the backpack strap slung over your shoulder, but the monster scientist didn’t look threatening. She looked anxious.

You worried that you might just make it worse by speaking but you had to try.

“We’ll get them back, Alphys.”

She still looked startled to have you address her but she composed herself and cleared her throat, even if she started fiddling with her lab coat.

“Y-you don’t know that. There’s only a 24% c-chance that your plan will work out and that’s being kind and only assuming you get to F-Frisk. And y-you’ll have to convince them y-you hate us. You have t-to listen t-to all the horrible things from the m-media again. W-what if you change your mind?”

You pursed your lips.

“It won’t be easy. We all know that but I’m not turning my back on any of you. I’ll have to play a role. A role that I’m dreading but it’s the best way to get them back. We will be okay.”

“J-just don’t l-let it become you then. R-remember how Sans and Papyrus c-changed you,” Alphys said, still fiddling and looking more uncomfortable than ever.

Sans chose that point to pop back into existence and you were the last person he was moving because Alphys would control things remotely from the laboratory in New New Home.

“You have changed me too, Alphys. You showed me a side that I didn’t realize could exist. I’ve seen humans be scared of monsters for four years. I feel foolish that I didn’t realize that some of you could be scared of us. It’s been eye opening. And I want to thank you for this, for letting me help and providing assistance.”

With that you turned towards Sans, who was watching you with his grin on the soft side. He extended his hand and you took it without hesitation.

His hand in yours felt almost familiar now, the same hum of powerful magic vibrating against your skin, his boney fingers closing around your hand and keeping your fingers intertwined.

“talk to you in an hour, alph,” Sans said, winked and then you saw blackness for just a split second before you were surrounded by plain furniture and a bedroom you hadn’t been in before. You felt slightly unsteady on your feet but Sans’ hand held onto yours tightly, effectively grounding you to the present.

“Human, please roll around in the bed,” you heard a voice of Dogamy before you’d even gotten your bearings or let go of Sans’ hand.

“scent trail,” Sans explained.

Dogamy and Dogaressa had been in charge of making sure that the location of the safe house, you’d be “escaping from” looked like you’d actually been there for a while. You weren’t sure that humans would be able to detect scent but you obediently fell onto the bed, dropping Sans’ hand in the process to avoid pulling him down on top of you.

That would be weird. Or…

You forced your mind away from the path it had been trying to go down and moved under the covers and tossed and turned for a bit. After you had literally just rolled around in the bed for five minutes, Sans walked back in and extended his hand back to you.

“i think that’s enough,” he said with a faint chuckle and bright eyes. He looked oddly amused and in a good mood considering what you was about to embark on. In less than an hour, you would stumble out of the apartment, after “breaking open” the lock and then the show would begin.

You took his hand and let him pull you up from the bed; you almost lost your footing and ended up in his personal space again. You quickly caught yourself and moved back but he had just keep that giddy smile on his face, so he really didn’t seem to mind.

You went around touching more surfaces around the apartment under the keen watch of Dogamy and Dogaressa. When the monsters were satisfied, Sans teleported them back to the others who were waiting in the other safe house.

As you found yourself completely alone, you felt the nerves creep up. Oddly, it helped to glance around this place, even if it was unfamiliar. A pile of dirty laundry was in the corner. Kitchen wear from the skeleton brothers’ kitchen in the sink. The blanket that you had slept with tossed onto the bed.

Little parts of the place that had started to feel like home, even though it could never be.

“you okay?” Sans asked as he reappeared without warning behind you but you didn’t even startle.

You’d been feeling out the place and you’d sensed the brief moment of before he came back and the air had been charged with magic. When you’d first been kidnapped, you would have screamed and scooted away if he’d done something like that.

“No,” you said honestly. “I have to convince some very clever people that I hate you, Sans. You, Papyrus, Undyne, Alphys and all the other monsters I’ve met and I just… I don’t. Not even Undyne, even if she still scares me a little bit.”

“she’ll be thrilled to hear that,” Sans commented, his voice light and teasing.

“Sans, what if they don’t believe me?”

“they will. you’re clever, doe. and you can give up the location of monster safe house. you’ve been seen with me breaking into your old place of employment. you talked to frisk before and frisk didn’t just stay quiet like i know they will with other hostile humans. and you can share important monster secrets.”

“About the secrets…” you started to say but Sans interrupted you.

“just focus on me. my shortcuts. my gravity manipulation. nothing about pap. only some on undyne, on her temper and spear attack but nothing about her eyes. preferably... not anything about my hp, if you can avoid it.”

You knew. You’d gone over it before, several times. It was what you had agreed to, except that last half sentence.

“I wouldn’t say anything about your HP. You know I won’t. I’d never let them know that. I would never let you be that vulnerable,” you said and you’d closed the distance between you without realizing. Sans’ eyes were locked with yours and his white pinpricks seemed larger and more expressive up close.

“but if you need to throw them a _bone_ , do it. frisk is more important.”

“And you think you five monsters will be able to take on a whole building of POCAM guards? Without killing anybody?” you asked.

Ever since Undyne had shouted at you for tying their hands, making them vulnerable by promising no human casualties, it had been nagging in the back of your mind. Were you endangering them? It wasn’t your intention. You just couldn’t bear the thought of innocent human blood being spilled, but you didn’t want the monsters to get hurt either.

“we’ll make it,” Sans promised. His voice dropped slightly and he appeared to be sincere.

You glanced at the clock. You should get going soon. According to Alphys, there were patrols around this part of the city around this time of day. It would be ideal to stumble right into the right hands immediately and they would be able to identify you quickly.

“you should get going…”

“Yeah,” you said but you didn’t make a move to step back. After a moment of consideration, you moved forward instead. You locked your hands around his neck, hugging him properly for the first time. You let your body press up against his and despite the fluffy hoodie he always wore; you could feel the hard unyielding nature of his ribcage. His hands hesitated before wrapping around your waist gently. It should have felt weird to wrap your arms around him but it really didn’t.

It wasn’t the bone-crushing hug you had gotten used to from Papyrus. It was different, softer and gentler but somehow still steadying and comforting.

You let out an anxious breath and you felt Sans give you a little reassuring squeeze. A powerful monster had his arms wrapped around you, holding you tight and most humans would have argued that you should be terrified but there wasn’t anywhere you’d rather be in that moment.

“ _you_ can do it, ” he whispered and his voice was pitched lower than ever and he was speaking so close to you.

You pulled back, silently wondering what it meant for you to cross that boundary where you sought comfort and reassurance in his embrace, and gave him a small smile. “Yeah, but… I still feel like I should probably sport some bruises.”

“no,” Sans said in the same no nonsense voice that he had used when you’d brought it up yesterday.

Sighing and giving in, you dropped the topic. You knew it might have helped sell it but you weren’t too keen on confirming the rumor that monsters hurt humans anyway.

You walked over to the door; lock already pried open from the inside with something. You found the sharpened knife resting next to the door and bend down to pick it up.

“You kept this?” you asked in wonder.

Of course, you remembered that he had taken it from you. You had thought he might use it on your after you’d almost killed him with it, even if that hadn’t been your intension.

“it was a smart move, you almost dusted me. and it could get into the lock. the best lies have elements of the truth. remember how you felt back then. hold on to it. let it fester.”

It seemed like a horrible idea for your mind but you knew logically it was a smart move. You had to pretend that the last two weeks hadn’t happened and that you hadn’t been taken into the skeleton brothers’ home and started to befriend and trust them.

“Just… remember all that you’ll hear,” you said and indicated the microphone ring on your finger, “isn’t how I actually feel.”

Sans just offered you his usual grin, but at least it was genuine.

Before you lost your nerve, you yanked open the door and started running. It got your heart racing and you let the nerves bring tears to your eyes, and maybe there was more reason for you to be upset. If this flopped and you were labeled a monster sympathizer, you might never see the monsters again. Even if the humans believed your loyalties, so many things still could go wrong. You had to put on the performance of a lifetime.

Clutching onto the weapon you made in your hand, you ran down the stairs frantically and burst out of the doors of the apartment building. Heaving for breath, you glanced around the quiet neighborhood and caught a few by-passers looking in your direction. You’d changed into the clothes you’d been kidnapped in.

If you had truly escaped, like you had planned from New New Home when you’d ambushed Sans, you would try to find someone official and get them to help you. Ideally, it would be the POCAM guards allegedly patrolling the area or otherwise a policeman.

You started running, trying to put as much distance between you and the safe house, which was what you would have done if you had actually escaped. You’d want to get far away out of fear that your kidnapper would come back.

You caught mutters of concern from several of the people you shoved past but you just kept running, aiming to get towards the city center where you’d likely find a police station. This was one of the cities that had been attacked four years ago when the war had been declared. It had been supposedly wiped out and only last year people were allowed to live here again.

It made oddly sense that the POCAM had set up base near a place where the monsters hadn’t been like to come back to after having laid it in ruins. Inevitably that was a lie too. Most of the old buildings still stood and only one sector seemed to have crumbled.

“Hey!” someone shouted with a voice of authority. “What are you doing?”

You turned but didn’t stop running until you saw it was two men wearing POCAM guard uniforms. Still, you made yourself falter and look scared. You’d been scared of them before and you’d had an undoubtedly well-documented disagreement with them before you were kidnapped.

Your eyes were running, your lungs crying for air and your legs shaking. You didn’t approach them but didn’t keep running either. You pretended that you were scared of monsters and blissfully unaware of how corrupt the POCAM had to be to conceal so much from public knowledge.

“Are you okay, miss? Why are you running?” one of the men asked as they approached you like you were a deer caught in a fence, ready to do more damage to itself if startled.

You sent a silent thank you that neither of these men were the ones you’d met before.

“I…” your voice came out raspy and strained and you let tears well up in your eyes. “Monsters… I was just….”

A sob escaped your lips as the two men came within touching distance. The one who’d spoken reached out for you but you shot back, a reasonable reflex, even if it hadn’t been on purpose.

“Dude, I think she’s that intern,” the other guard spoke up as he looked at you. “You know the facility that was attacked nearly a month ago? They had an intern unaccounted for and she was later spotted with that skeleton monster Sans breaking…”

You screamed and jolted back. “Not that name…” you muttered and you hated yourself a tiny bit. You hated that you had to pretend to be scared of Sans and that you had to paint him in such a horrible light. But he’d agreed to it and if it got Frisk back, then it would be worth it.

“Shit, I think you’re right,” the first guard answered and tried to step toward you again.

“No, no, no,” you muttered, hands over your ears and making your eyes stay wide and seemingly terrified.

“Yeah, don’t worry, sweetheart. We are guards from the Protection Of Civilians Against Monsters. What’s your name?”

You tried to steady your rapid breathing and choked out your name as you brought your arms up around your shoulders, hugging yourself.

You’d originally planned how you’d run to the POCAM camp a couple of miles outside of the New New Home and you hadn’t pictured that you’d have been this shaken but it felt safer to play the terrified victim.

The guards shared a knowing glance and the first guard stayed with you while the other went to make a call. The guard was actually nice, introducing himself and assuring you that you’d be safe now. He even took off his jacket and draped it around your shaking form.

You remembered how Sans had given you his hoodie when you’d been cold and you felt nauseated about the task ahead of you. But if they identified you as a “monster sympathizer” then you wouldn’t be of any use. You had to commit to the act, even though it already hurt.

You pushed down all the good memories with the monsters, the parts that had made you feel safe and comfortable and had gradually made you change your mind; you focused on the guard’s questions instead.

You focused on the lie you had come up with and acted scared and out of it. You managed to tell the guard roughly the direction of the place you had fled from and he jotted it down in his notes and quickly called for back up to check it out. When the other guard returned, you held your breath and awaited your fate.

“We have orders to take her to the base immediately,” he said.

“ _the_ base?” The guard who gave you his jacket asked and surprise showed on his features. “She just told me the place she ran from isn’t more than a couple of minutes away, shouldn’t we check that out first? I sent the other team that way but still…”

You were pulling the jacket closer around you, pretending that you weren’t listening with every fiber in your body.

“Yes, they said she is important. It’s the closest and there are other circumstances. Let’s just get in the car.”

Surprisingly gently, you were coaxed into the car. You never felt comfortable in cars since the accident but you swallowed it down and closed your eyes and dug your fingernails into your palms. You preferred to sleep in cars, so you forgot where you were, but you needed to stay alert.

A short drive later you pulled up to the place you had only seen grainy satellite images of. It was bigger than you’d imagined and fenced in. How would Sans and the others even be able to get in and let alone escape afterwards?

Monsters had magic but still, this was some heavy human technology. Hopefully, Alphys had found a way to hack into their system. The microphone ring was made to stick close to your skin, impossible to peel off unless you pushed a little mechanism in the in the stone design and Alphys had also added some sort of tech fiber, which was also part magic, into the ring, so that if you could touch a computer with it that was hooked up to the network, then she wouldn’t have to go through the firewalls but she was working tirelessly on getting the code ready, just in case.

The car was let through the gates after the guard driving shouted out to the guard manning the fence. Moving forward in a slow pace, the car turned away from the main entrance and went to the left side of the building to a smaller entrance.

So far they were still treating you like a victim, and you could only hope that would continue. The guards were gently encouraging you without putting their hands on you to actually guide you and yet again reassuring you that you were safe here despite the scary look of the place.

You paused in front of the doors and made your eyes as innocent as possible. You knew that you’d likely not see these two guards again and they seemed somewhat reasonable and you were scared what kind of people you’d meet once inside. It also reminded you that decent humans worked here and you desperately hoped that the monsters would be able to pull of the rescue without hurting any of them, at least permanently.

“What will happen to me?” you asked, trying to make you sound younger, more fragile and more like someone who should be protected instead of them seeing through the façade and figuring out that you were planning a risky rescue of some of their most important prisoners.

“You will be fine, sweetheart,” the guard without a jacket reassured you. “You will just have to answer some questions. That’s all. Then you can get some rest.”

You nodded and didn’t mention how you didn’t give a flying hoot about resting. You wanted to confirm that Frisk was in the building, same with Mettaton. It seemed like the most likely place to keep them but you could still be wrong and then you had no clue where the teenager might have been taken.

The guard held the door open for you and you took a steadying breath, reminded yourself how Sans had reassured you that everything would be fine. You had to trust him and the other monsters. You had a good plan and now you had to play your part.

However, as you walked through the side entrance, you were met with a sight that you hadn’t expected at all. Your jaw metaphorically dropped to the floor as you stared at the man at the front of the four-person group greeting you. Two were guards and a lady in a doctor’s coat but you knew the man in front of them.

He’d been your boss at the research facility. You had assumed he’d been killed before you learnt that the monsters had just knocked everyone unconscious that hadn’t surrendered. He’d been an annoying boss to work under and he was the one whose passcodes you’d used to get into the building, so he wasn’t exactly careful despite his high clearance level. The research facility had been government run but you didn’t have any direct ties to POCAM. So that still left one question.

“What are you doing here, Professor Jeffords?” you asked, hostility coming into your voice without permission.

“I couldn’t miss interviewing the seemingly miraculous escapee from monster captivity, especially since I found out it was my very own intern.”

You knew you hadn’t been the first person to leave the monsters and you weren’t sure why he spoke of your escape like that. Sans had told you of other cases where people had left but people had to live off the grid afterwards out of fear that they would be identified as monster sympathizers. And if someone remained hateful after the three-month education course, which they ran for humans that had surrendered, they were also just let back into the world. Most changed their mind though, and many humans decided to stay in New New Home.

“You seem surprised to see me,” Jeffords noted and stepped forward, which made you step backward towards the two guards that had brought you in. “But I can’t wait to hear all about your time with the monsters.”

There was something slightly sinister in his grin and you suddenly felt much more afraid of the plan failing than before you walked through the doors.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uhh, now we're in a new setting and our dear reader is about to embark on quite the task. She might have a hidden microphone and earpiece in her ring but I can assure you she's about to feel very alone and disconnected from her monster friends. Drama is on the agenda for the next few chapters. As always, I would love to know your thoughts. 
> 
> Thank you so much for over 2,000 reads and 200 kudos! Also, a huge thank you to all the lovely people who leave me a comment - I read all of them and will reply when I find the time. I appreciate it so much. 
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday 10th of December. Also happy 1st of Advent!


	19. An Opposite Belief

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She had successfully been brought into the secret POCAM headquarters but her challenges were far from over. She would have to convince them that she hated and feared monsters while figuring out where Frisk and Mettaton were located and how to get to them.

You were still staring at your former boss Jeffords in disbelief. He was a researcher, why had he been relocated to a secret POCAM base after the attack on the research facility where you had both worked?

“Rumors has it that the skeleton monster Sans himself took you and…” Jeffords started saying, only to be interrupted as the woman next to him cleared her throat.

“There will be plenty of time for the briefing afterwards. First, she needs some new clothes and a physical, if you don’t mind coming with me, dear?”

The woman offered you a timid smile and seemed a bit on edge. She oddly reminded you of Alphys but you pushed down that recognition right away. You didn’t particularly want to go through a physical but you remembered them from the yearly summer camps to train you to fight monsters and they weren’t too bad.

Wordlessly, you nodded and followed her and made sure to stay as far away from Jeffords as possible. He had always been a bit odd, which might be expected of an academic but now he was outright unsettling to be around. Or maybe it was just the way he was staring at you as if you were one of his research projects.

“My name is Madelyn and I’m the resident doctor here. Medical doctor, that is. Plenty of people have PhDs here,” she said as she walked beside you, matching your pace.

You gave her your name and she smiled, even though it occurred to you afterwards that she probably already knew it. You reached a door that let into what looked like a proper doctor’s office.

She asked you to strip off behind screen and take on the gown she’d laid out. You stripped hesitantly; suddenly glad Sans hadn’t allowed anyone to bruise your skin for appearances, even if Undyne had volunteered and promised not to hit you too hard.

You emerged feeling even more vulnerable as you sat down on the raised platform in the middle.

She started by asking you a couple of routine questions and you answered them with forced neutrality. Then she moved on to check your body and you just zoned out, silently thanking the monster fighting summer camps that you’d gotten used to this. She paused at the ring on your finger and tried to take it off but the safety mechanism kept it in place. You explained it was an old ring you’d worn since you were a teenager that had gotten stuck and asked that she didn’t cut it off. She hesitated for a moment before agreeing; probably realizing that cutting off a ring wasn’t really a priority in the situation. You breathed a discrete sigh of relief.

She looked at the scar on your arm and you hesitantly confessed that it had been inflicted by one of Undyne’s magic spears. However, you lied about the timing of it, saying it was done within your first day as to explain how it could be to this degree of healing.

“You seem perfectly healthy…” she noted when she finished the physical and you caught the note of suspicion in her voice and the question she didn’t ask.

“I… They fed me… pretty well. Monster food, keeps you healthy,” you said, making your voice small and hesitant.

It caught the doctor’s attention though and she bombarded you with questions. You dodged most of them, only giving answers to the questions that didn’t really matter. You didn’t want her to know just how much you knew about monster food. You’d been cooking monster food with Papyrus occasionally and you probably knew more about it than any other humans, at least outside of the ones that lived in New New Home.

“I have to ask, and it’s not going to be nice, but did the monsters abuse you in any way? Physically? Psychologically? Sexually?”

Your face of shock was genuine. Because yeah, you’d momentarily forgotten that monsters were also accused of raping the humans they allegedly enslaved. You choked down on your discomfort and stuck to the story.

“They kidnapped me,” you said, making your voice sound angry, even as it trembled. “They held me against my will. I wanted to get away. They didn’t… touch me, not like that. Just, got a bit rough, at first. I had a couple of bruises on my arms but they healed… I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Aw, honey,” the doctor said and she looked full of sympathy for you.

You almost felt bad for lying to her but you couldn’t allow yourself to worry about that. And you needed to move on from the bruises, the story of which had been based on reality. Sans had bruised your arm on your first day by accident and Pap had done worse to your shoulder when he was blinded by pain. You actually didn’t want to talk about it.

“Do you feel up for the briefing?” she asked, voice gentle and open and giving you the impression that you could push it back if you asked. At least that probably meant that you still appeared to be a helpless victim to them.

But you would have to switch roles. You had to show them that you had information they wanted and that you were capable if you wanted any chance of getting any information of your own and the permission to see anyone they held at the base.

“I’ll be fine,” you said as you let confidence pour into your voice. “I… studied monsters before – majoring in biology with a minor in monster history. I kept an eye out, observing. I think… I think the things I know might help us, you know? I want to help.”

“You’re so brave,” she praised and looked like she might cry.

“It’s okay, Madelyn,” you said and found yourself wanting to comfort the doctor.

“I’m sorry, I’m such a mess,” she said, even if the only sign of her distress was the slight sniffle from tearing up. “It’s just you have been through so much, over three weeks in monster captivity and you still know how to smile.”

For a beat, you were worried that you fucked up and she had seen through you but she just continued.

“And I understand that you must be scared but you are still so sensible. Those horrible monsters took you and you’re holding it together so well.”

“Shock,” you explained. “Nerves. I don’t know. A scientist’s clinical approach?”

She nodded and finished up by checking that she had everything in her notes. You changed out of the gown into some sweatpants and a sweatshirt, both with the POCAM logo on. It felt wrong to wear the brand of the people who had kidnapped a teenager but you had appearances to think about, so you didn’t protest. Madelyn escorted you down the call to a conference room. In your mind, you had imagined the briefing would happen in the likes of a police investigation room, so this was a far better alternative.

Even if seeing Jeffords sitting there with a polygraph and a technician definitely wasn’t something that eased your mind.

“Did you get catalogued the damages?” Jeffords asked Madelyn when you walked in.

“Just one physical scar but probably more mental ones,” she said and turned to you. “Would you like me to stay?”

You nodded without even thinking about it. The technician was still present but being in a room with Jeffords made you uneasy as it was, so you would only welcome people who could act as a buffer.

You took a seat where Jeffords pointed, squirming a bit in your seat. A couple of hours ago, you’d drunk some sort of mixture that by magic should help against human technology like lie detectors. However, it wasn’t a sure fix and you’d have to bullshit your way through a lot of it. You also knew that polygraphs were mostly for a formality rather than the results having any real influence. A lot of people who’d been briefed would be nervous and on edge, both of which might interfere with the results. But if the mere presence of it scared the people strapped up to answer truthfully, then it was doing its job.

The first couple of questions were easy, background information to get you to have a baseline. Confirming who you were, what you’d been doing before and then they moved on to the questions that really mattered.

The first question, what day you had been kidnapped, had been easy enough to answer but then started the trouble.

“It was brought to my attention that you crossed paths with the former monster ambassador the night before?” Jeffords said.

You forced yourself not to react and kept your face as neutral as possible.

“Yes. I met the human who let the monsters out of the Underground. Three POCAM guards showed up with the teenager in tow at the research facility I worked at and commandeered use of our space for the night. I was working late and was the only one in the building.”

Jeffords made a note and then looked up at you with a scrutinizing glare.

“The guards filed an official complaint about you citing interference as the cause. In your own words describe what happened?”

“I didn’t know what was going on. The monster ambassador Frisk seemed distressed and since they were mute, I decided to fetch a whiteboard to be able to communicate with them. I didn’t mean any harm. I only wanted Frisk to be more comfortable in a horrible situation,” you said and steadied yourself for the part you were about to add on. “I was told that they had been rescued from monsters. They seemed very out of it and made little sense even with the whiteboard and I get it now, after having been held against my will by monsters too. It’s horrible.”

You balled your hands into fists as much as the equipment allowed and let your shoulder shake.

“But you did get Frisk to react to you?” Jeffords asked, sitting up straighter and looking at you with fascination.

“They were just a scared kid and I was providing tea and a kind smile? I didn’t realize I wasn’t allowed to talk to them and I was very frightened when the guards were suddenly yelling at my face and threatening to report me,” you said and let tears well up into your eyes.

It wasn’t difficult to get upset when you thought about the situation. But it wasn’t because of the guards and how they had addressed you. It was because you still remembered the look on Frisk’s face as the guard has hauled them out of the kitchen. There had been a slimmer of hope in their smile when you had signed goodbye. You felt terrible reliving the memory and you blamed yourself for not putting up more of a fight.

“That is interesting. They have been quite uncooperative to everyone else,” Jeffords said and your heart leaped into your throat. But before you could ask him about it, he moved on. “Why did the monsters take you after the massacre at the research facility?”

You flinched slightly at the wrong term. It hadn’t been a massacre. You weren’t even sure if a single person had died. But you weren’t supposed to know that.

“I was stupid. They figured out I had talked to Frisk and kidnapped me as a lead. I should have kept my mouth shut,” you lied because looking back, it had changed everything that Sans and Undyne had taken a personal interest in you.

“Where did the monsters take you?”

You spoke about the logistics, though not the truth. You pretended that up until Sans and you had been spotted back at the research facility you had been held in the hotel room where you had spent the first ten days. Afterwards, you had been moved to the safe house from which you had “fled”.

Jeffords seemed to be eating it all up and Madelyn kept giving you encouraging smiles. “And what were you doing at the research facility?”

“S-sans…” you said his name with a stutter, as if just saying the name out loud was scaring you, “wanted to get the research. We didn’t find anything. But…”

“But?” Jeffords encouraged.

This was the part you were looking least forward to. You would have to hang out Sans as your way into their trust. You had already given them a monster safe house but you knew that wouldn’t be enough.

“H-he teleported us there. With his magic.”

Jeffords, Madelyn and the technician seemed to lose their shit at this information. Jeffords was smiling smugly, writing down in frantically as you spoke. You knew humans kept files on the prominent monsters and Sans’ teleportation had been the topic of much debate. You would now be able to confirm it and it hurt that you had to offer up information on someone you cared about. But Sans had made you promise to keep the others out of it. He was ready to take the blowback all on himself.

The questions from Jeffords came rapidly after that and gave you an opportunity to offer up more of your general observations of the monsters. You didn’t tell them anything that would let it show how they were just like humans because it might subject you to questions of your loyalties and that was the last thing you needed. You spoke of the layout of New New Home instead, of the gated community that humans hadn’t been able to figure out. You kept it vague though, as you supposedly had retained all of this information from staring out of your window or being interrogated. It hurt but you confirmed Sans’ gravity manipulation as well when Jeffords kept pressing for it.

He was possible radiant but the time he ran out of questions. Madelyn was watching you with a light frown on her face, seemingly puzzled by you yet again. You tried to ignore it.

“I knew there was a reason I picked you for the internship. You saw an opportunity and took full advantage of it. This is gold. A first hand experience from a fellow scientist, or scientist-to-be,” Jeffords said and glanced down over his notes.

You moved on to talk about your escape, which was much easier to talk about.

“Did they find the place yet?” you asked, desperate to shift the roles so that you would also be allowed to ask questions but you had to tread carefully.

“The monster safe house? Yes,” Jeffords confirmed. “The POCAM team found it easily based on your descriptions. The technicians are exanimating it as we speak.”

You nodded. Good, they would only find the things there that you had wanted them too. Dogamy and Dogaressa had gone over that place with a fine toothcomb.

“What about…”

Your stomach grumbled loudly and you tried and failed to silence it by putting your hand against the sound. “Sorry.”

“Don’t worry, miss,” Jeffords said with a respect in his tone that he’d never used to address you when you’d been his intern. “I think we’re done with the official briefing anyway. But would you accompany me to the cafeteria?”

You didn’t want to spend time alone with him but it was better than being strapped up to a polygraph. You could only hope that your answers hadn’t caused any problems but you had seen the technician nod several times, as if you were telling the truth, so you hoped that you were in the clear.

The technician was unstrapping you while Jeffords went outside to make a quick call and Madelyn came up to you.

You looked up to meet her eyes and you weren’t able to decode the emotion in them. The technician packed up and headed out the door where you heard a snippet of Jeffords talking very enthusiastically to someone.

“I know it’s a risky bet but we need drastic unconventional methods,” Jeffords was saying before the door shut, effectively muffling the sound so that you couldn’t hear.

“You, young woman, seem to be an enigma,” Madelyn said as her eyes scanned over you as if she could figure you out if she looked hard enough.

“I’m sorry if I don’t make much sense. I must still be shaken up,” you excused, hoping that would deter her.

“Oh, you make perfect sense in your responses. You’re the most put-together person I have met that have been rescued from monster captivity.”

Again, you worried if the doctor had figured out your play and would call you out on it. Jeffords seemed to be eating out of your palm, which was an odd experience, but it was definitely favorable to a scrutinizing gaze.

Then she cracked a small smile and shook her head a bit like she couldn’t believe her own thoughts. “I still think you’re brave but perhaps I was wrong about the reason,” she commented.

Jeffords came back into the room, looking anxious to get going and Madelyn excused herself before you could get a chance to ask her what she meant. You weren’t sure that you would want to, so you took the interrupting as a blessing in disguise.

The cafeteria was bursting with personnel and it was odd to be back surrounded by so many people after having been almost exclusively surrounded by monsters for the nearly a month. You grabbed a sandwich for the ease of it and followed Jeffords to a quiet corner and an empty table.

“How did you escape?” you asked as soon as you had sat down. “You were there too, right? When the monsters came in and… killed… people.”

“Yes, but I outwitted those dumb animals,” Jeffords said proudly.

You seriously doubted that. Undyne had caught you sneaking off and between the royal guards and the many Froggits you seriously doubted anyone would have managed to sneak off. It was more likely that the monsters had knocked him over the head and left him there.

You were in dangerous territory but you felt justified and in character when you asked your next question.

“How many died?” you asked in a small voice, wondering how colossally he would lie to you.

“That’s classified,” he replied instead. “And your clearance never was high enough, even before you got kidnapped and needed to go through an evaluation to confirm your loyalties.”

You didn’t manage to stop the gulp that escaped you.

“Another evaluation or what? What about what happened in the conference room?”

“Oh, that was the evaluation, albeit an unusual one. I never did conduct them before; frankly, I have little interest in listening to the soft fairytales most humans spin about the monsters after they have met them. Enchanted, the lot of them. Or weak-willed enough to let themselves become monster sympathizers,” Jeffords snickered and shoved a forkful of food into his mouth.

You didn’t want to say the thing at the tip of your tongue. That if multiple people came back with the same experiences, then there was probably something to the information. It hurt that someone who you’ve academically looked up to could be so prejudiced and dismissive, even if it was a classic example of confirmation bias. Jeffords rejected all the information that didn’t fit with his hypothesis about the monsters. You understood why the people changed their tone if they had been through a three-month education course and gotten to see a different side of the beings they were being told to fear.

If the human media wasn’t spreading lies, then perhaps there would never have been a war or at the very least it could have ended a long time ago.

“But not you. You’re still levelheaded. You kept your wits. It’s an impressive feat, especially facing down one of the most powerful monsters registered. Tell me the monster who interrogated you about the former monster ambassador. The infamous Sans, the skeleton.”

“I don’t know more about his powers than what I told you before,” you said and took a bite of your sandwich, which seemed just dust on your tongue but that might be because of your nerves or the lies you had to keep telling.

“No, not his powers, though we will need to revisit that intriguing topic soon. Did he let any personal information slip? Something we can use against his kin?”

Way too much, you thought. You knew all to well how to make Sans crumble if you wanted. You could tell them how you could go for his younger brother, a monster that miraculously hadn’t gotten much attention, likely because Sans always tried to keep him away from the danger and action, much to Papyrus’ annoyance. You could tell them about the 1 HP, which would doom Sans. One good hit and he would be done for. You could tell them about how he cared for Frisk and his monster family and how he’d do anything in his power to protect the ones he cared about.

Sans liked to portray himself as cynical in fights and generally as a lighthearted joker that didn’t care about anything. But he cared. He cared so much more than he let people see and he hid it because he knew it could be his downfall.

“He was very cynical and menacing. He didn’t let his amour crack,” you blatantly lied but you tried to imagine the hatred you had felt when he’d initially kidnapped you. It seemed like a lifetime ago and so much had changed since then.

“That’s a shame,” Jeffords said, stuffing his face with food. When you had worked with him, you had noticed his habit of forgetting to eat only to then devour food like he hadn’t eating in weeks the moment he remembered. It seemed like that at least hadn’t changed.

“I have been meaning to ask you, Professor Jeffords. What happened with Frisk?” you asked, cautiously. However, it was a blessing in disguise that you were talking to someone who had known you before.

“You always were a curious one,” Jeffords commented, chewing on his last bit of food. “Frisk was labeled a monster sympathizer.”

“Oh…”

Your heart caught leapt into your throat but you tried not to let it show. It was to be expected really, as Frisk had been so unrelenting about how they had been kidnapped and wanted to go back to their family.

“In my opinion, they should have done that from day one. That kid was turned around in the head from spending months down there, surrounded by monsters. There was no chance to salvage them, which is a shame because they seemed like a bright kid despite the disability. However, they are an asset, only a very tight-lipped one.”

Your brain couldn’t help but drawing parallels. You had been kidnapped by the monsters for information and Frisk had been kidnapped by the humans to spill all the secrets they knew about monsters. It was unsettling.

“That’s a shame,” you said but you were secretly pleased that Frisk had kept quiet, just like Sans had predicted.

“We’ll get them to crack eventually. They all do, whether that is monsters or monster sympathizers. You could have seen what we have managed to do with their poster robot monster.”

“Mettaton?” you asked and tried not to sound too interested.

“Yeah, it was a real wonder of science that body and difficult at heck to break down. It took almost a year before we managed, mostly because of my brilliance when I joined the team three weeks ago.”

Your stomach sank and you felt like barfing up the half sandwich you had cautiously eaten. You pushed the plate away from you and fought to stay in character.

You were scared of monsters, not sympathetic towards them. You found them fascinating but only from a scientific point of view. That was who you were in here. You had to remember that.

“Incredible. No wonder you relocated to here. They are lucky to have you, Professor Jeffords,” you said to stroke his ego. Predictably the man perked up and looked like a dog that had just been told “good boy”.

“They are very lucky indeed,” he agreed. “And sometimes a new approach and a breath of fresh air is just what a project need.”

He seemed to be mulling over something, while watching you carefully. His phone rang and he got up and excused himself.

You felt odd being left in the cafeteria but you took it as a good sign that they hadn’t thrown you into lock-up right away. The plan seemed to be moving along smoothly. You had gotten confirmed that they had both Frisk and Mettaton, though you weren’t sure if they were in the building.

You desperately hoped so, especially if the humans had been successful in messing with Mettaton’s technology. It was what you had been afraid of and the fact that Jeffords had helped “crack the case” made you feel uncomfortable just talking to him. He had always been relentless in his work and it had taken hours to get his notes in order afterwards. And that had been mostly theoretical research, now he seemed to actually be working on the monsters. How many monsters had the human government seized?

The media talked of “putting down” monsters ethically, not keeping them prisoners. You weren’t sure what option was worse if the humans decided to do experiments on the captured monsters. You felt bad about the times your fascination had come out with Sans, Papyrus and the others monsters and how you’d wished to study how they worked. Obviously, you didn’t mean it in the sense of treating them like lab rats but if that was actually happening…

Jeffords came back to the table, phone in hand and a smug grin on his face.

“I just saved you from the week long quarantine,” he said, clearly proud of himself. “You’re clearly still sensible, even if you are predictably marked by your kidnapping.”

“What does that mean?” you asked with a confused frown on your face.

“It means that you get to skip to the part where I ask for your assistance.”

“Assistance?” you asked, deciding to play it dumb.

Your heart was beating out of your chest. Something told you that this was all going too smoothly and it would only mean that something would go horribly wrong down the road.  

“You said Frisk was willing to talk to you before, correct?”

“When the POCAM guards came by the research facility. Yes, they were but what does that have to do with anything?”

“Frisk is here in the building. Under lock-down and constant interrogation.”

That was it. It was the confirmation that you had been hoping for. It still left Mettaton’s whereabouts unaccounted for but now wasn’t the time to ask about the monster.

“I thought monster sympathizers were just thrown in a special jail?”

“Normally, but not someone as valuable as Frisk. I just got the results back from your polygraph. The equipment recorded no lies, albeit it was riddled with uncertainties, which I frankly put down to technical errors. That machine can never give a clear answer. I talked to my boss and I have been granted permission to enlist your help.”

“What do you want me to do?” you asked, even though you had a feeling you already knew the answer.

“I want you to interrogate Frisk. I want you to get them to tell you everything about the monsters. That information might just win us the war. Our world need you,” Jeffords said rather dramatically.

You clenched your teeth, for a brief moment of gathering the courage. “I would love to help in anyway I can. Anything to win the war against the bastards that kidnapped and threatened me.”

The words tasted vile in your mouth but you had long ago passed the point of no return.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the first chapter since Chapter 2 where I havn't opened the HTML to add comic sans to Sans' dialogue. Huh, it feels a bit odd. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter. The monsters were listening in on everything our dear reader was saying, even if they aren't very present in this chapter. As always, feedback is highly appreciated. 
> 
> Happy 2nd of Advent! I have yet to get properly into the festive spirit because of exams but hopefully, I'll feel it soon. Are you guys feeling festive yet?
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday 17th of December.


	20. An Unpleasant Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything had gone so smoothly so far but she didn't look forward to confronting Frisk, who would undoubtedly be hostile and hate her pretend persona, even if they were technically on the same side.

You desperately wanted to talk to Sans and the others. It felt horrible to be away from them while getting all of this information. Of course, you had turned your ring so that it should be on and recording the surroundings, which would feed to Alphys back in New New Home. She had given Undyne a radio to set up in their safe house as well, so you knew that they were likely listening to every word.

But it sucked being unable to get feedback from them, or being able to speak to them directly. It would look indescribably odd if you just started saying things without context in the presence of Jeffords, who seemed intent not to leave your side. And you could hardly slip the ring into your ear and use it without arising suspension. That part was reserved for the attack.

“The doctor gave you a clean bill of health, correct?” Jeffords asked as the two of you excited the cafeteria.

“Yes,” you confirmed but didn’t add how she had also told you to get some rest. Frankly, speaking to Frisk was first priority and you didn’t care about your health at the moment. You hadn’t slept well the night before but running on little sleep with huge eye bags just added to the lie, so that fit rather perfectly. “I would never turn down the opportunity for research.”

Jeffords smiled like a proud father and ushered you to Human Resources, where you got a temporary ID card and got a security clearance that was significantly higher than it had been before.

“Is that even allowed?” you asked without thinking and then wished that you would be a little more careful with filtering your thoughts, especially in your current situation.

But Jeffords just smiled and waved it off. “You had clearance before. We just bumped it up a little. It’s no big deal.”

It felt like a big deal. When you were younger, heck just a month ago, you would have been thrilled to have a security clearance that high. It would enable you to go through the monster files and so much more. You would be allowed to do classified research. Only this would never happen because you had another goal in mind now and when Jeffords and the other humans realized your new loyalties, they would strip you of your clearance and come after you with all they got.

Your planned actions would likely be viewed as treason.

You must have gone pale because Jeffords was suddenly asking if you were feeling well.

“Yeah,” you said, the word coming out dry. You weren’t okay. You were betraying your government. You were aiding the monsters. You were turning against your own. It felt bad.

But you had to remind yourself of how the media misrepresented monsters and how the government had hid it and placed a bomb at a peace treaty meeting. But then again, that was information you had gotten from the monsters. What if they had lied and you had just been too foolish to see it?

“Excellent. Then I’ll take you to see Frisk immediately. We usually do an interrogation around this time every day. Of course, the kid has yet to do a sign or write something down. Predictably, they have a lot of practice staying silent,” Jeffords joked but the joke fell flat to you.

Being mute wasn’t something you joked about like that. Especially not when the person was practically still a kid, held against their will and interrogated daily to give up their family.

What would Frisk do when they saw you?

You didn’t need to wait long for the answer. 20 minutes later you were guided to a proper police-like interrogation room with one-sided window and an ominous, occasionally flickering light over the table. At least, Frisk wasn’t handcuffed to the table but you spotted the restraint around their torso, keeping them to their chair.

Frisk looked miserable through the glass. You were beyond grateful that Frisk couldn’t see you and that Jeffords didn’t focus on studying your face as he was explaining safety precaution. You could vaguely see your reflection and you looked absolutely horrified.

Frisk was in a jumpsuit, prison style, hair sticking out in all directions except for where their fringe had been. It looked like someone had taken a pair of scissors to their hair and snapped off the entire fringe. Frisk was leaned forward with a seemingly defeatist posture but with a determined expression steady on their face.

“What happened to their hair?” you asked, voice low.

Jeffords seemed affronted that you would interrupt his warnings about not getting too close but he sighed and answered you. “They hid behind their fringe and one of the interrogators got angry about it and clipped it off.”

You could too easily picture a stubborn Frisk with their eyes cast down, face hidden behind their fringe as their last shield only for an idiot to come all up in their space and clip that away too. You felt furious anew, at the situation and at yourself for not doing something sooner.

An interpreter walked in and gave you an ear snail to put into your ear. She would translate if Frisk begun signing. Having been prepped, you leaned forward and picked up the whiteboard and marker and hesitated before you made the move to walk though.

“I’m assuming it’s under video surveillance?”

“Video and audio. Standard protocol. So no extreme measures but any information you can get out of them will be appreciated. I don’t expect you to crack them at the first attempt – Frisk is proving to be quite a stubborn one – but any progress would be appreciated from the professional interrogators.”

You nodded and tried not to think of what approaches the so-called professional interrogators had used to make Frisk talk. At least, they looked somewhat unharmed, so likely the government hadn’t stepped up to actually torturing a teenager but you had a feeling there might have been some psychological torture thrown in, like sleep deprivation and threats.

Your hand trembled as it closed around the door handle. You took a breath and clicked open the door and faced Frisk for the second time in your life.

Things were radially different now, even if Frisk was still in being held against their will.

Frisk’s head snapped up and watched with suspicion as someone entered the room. Their eyes were full of pain and anger but it changed when they saw who had walked through the door. Instead, their brows furrowed in confusion and their eyes scanned you carefully.

As their eyes fell on your freshly made POCAM ID card, the hostility came flooding back to their features. Their hands moved in rapid succession.

“Betrayal,” the interpreter’s voice came through in your ear. “You are just like them. I thought you were different.”

It hurt to be able to know what the signs meant but you could probably have made a pretty accurate guess just by the furious look on Frisk’s face.

“Hi Frisk, and I didn’t betray you. There is no “them and us”. We’re all just humans,” you said in an even voice and Frisk looked confused as to how you had been able to understand. You pointed to the device in your ear and desperately wished that it were the one on your finger so you would be able to hear your monster friends to get their advice and pass on any information that Frisk should know. “I have an interpreter in my ear. I’m afraid my sign language is still rather rusty.”

Frisk just scowled at you, as if remembering that silence was their game plan and that it was unwise to talk to any of the humans with ID badges that were holing them against their will.

“It’s good to see you again, Frisk,” you said while you tried to figure out how to tell them about the rescue mission plan and let alone getting them to believe that you were on the monsters’ side without alerting the humans listening in. It would not be easy and at the moment Frisk seemed content to just lock up and not even listen to what you had to say.

You sat down across them at the table and pushed the whiteboard and marker towards them gently and pulled out your earpiece and laid it on the table. It would have been beneficial to have an interpreter in your ear but that also meant an open line to Jeffords and you didn’t want any interruption or guiding of your talk with Frisk. Actually, you would prefer just the whiteboard or only the simple signs that you could understand.

“Remember?” you asked and nodded towards the whiteboard. Frisk narrowed their eyes and then gave the tiniest of nods.

“I found your _family_ , Frisk. Sans and Undyne came looking for you,” you said and Frisk suddenly straightened and their interest was definitely sparked. However, Frisk also threw a warning glance towards the glass and raised an eyebrow.

You tried to focus on the feeling in your soul and project feelings of friendship and safety. It hadn’t occurred to you until much later after Sans had showed you your soul but Frisk had said that they saw your kindness and integrity when the two of you first met. It was the two colors of your soul. Maybe they were able to look into your soul like Sans did. According to Sans, Frisk had magic in them and they could manipulate and reset time, so it wasn’t so farfetched that they might be able to look at souls too.

“I was taken by them. They attacked the research facility where I met you. I only escaped today. Over three weeks, I was in their captivity and asked questions about where you went. Sans was really keen on finding you.”

Frisk’s eyes were searching for something on your face and their eyes had softened now.

“I was kidnapped, Frisk, just like…” you hesitated before adding the final word; you, “I was taken from my home by someone that terrified me; the monsters you are protecting and thereby letting get an upper hand on us in the war. Are they worth committing treason for?”

Frisk made a sign that you were able to interpret. It was easy enough. One of the first words people learned when introduced to sign language.

Yes _._

Your lips twisted upwards in a smile that you halted. You clearly thought the same or you wouldn’t be here. However, it felt good to meet another human that was on the monster side of things.

“You’re going to have to communicate eventually,” you said and waved your hands about before quickly letting your index fingers coming together and pulling apart. You so desperately hoped that Frisk caught the sign translating to _opposite_. “It isn’t like they know where you are and they will come knocking through the doors to rescue you. They don’t care about you. You were a pawn to get them out from their underground prison. The only reason they are looking for you is to kill you to make sure you don’t spill any secrets.”

Frisk physically recoiled, at least as much as the restraint around their torso allowed them to. The anger was back in their eyes and you worried if you had fucked up. Then their hands went to grab the write board and wrote.

_I don’t care. They are **my** **family**. I love them._

Your heart was breaking, little by little. Had Frisk not caught your sign or were they just playing along so well that even you were falling for it?

“I know you think so, kiddo,” you said and the nickname seemed to pull a reaction from Frisk but they quickly schooled their expression. “But we are at war. I know you were in that room too. The bomb would have killed you. You only got out of there unscathed because of one thing.”

Frisk masked their surprise pretty well. Evidently, they had caught on what you were hinting at. All official press from the bombing had reported that Frisk had been dug out from the rubble with the rest of the government official and the monsters. But thanks to Sans, you knew that Frisk hadn’t been dug out, but rather Sans had teleported them to safely. Tensions had arisen even before anyone had made it to the hospital and the monsters and Frisk had left. Only hours later, war was officially declared.

“They tried to kill me too,” you said and showed the scar on your arm from Undyne’s spears. “Undyne attacked me. She was furious with me. Quite a temper that monster.”

You didn’t like bashing Undyne but you knew the monster was more than capably of handling herself. Even so, her temper was hardly a secret.

Frisk picked up the whiteboard and wrote again.

_She is passionate_

“Sure, we can call it that too but she gave me nightmares. Her and Sans both,” you said and gulped because this part of the pretend was actually real. “I would try to stay awake for as long as possible, so I wouldn’t fall asleep and see glowing spears headed straight for me or feel seemingly nothing constrict my breathing as Sans grinning menacingly at me.”

Frisk’s face moved from anger to sympathy and you wondered if they really did have a read on when you were lying or not because they started scribbling and it wasn’t what you had expected.

_I’m sorry that happened to you._

_I know they didn’t mean to but no one deserves that._

If you hadn’t been too focused on keeping up appearances, you might have let yourself tear up. You wanted to reach out and wrap your arms around the teenager and whisper into their ear that everything would be fine. You wanted to tell them that you didn’t blame Undyne and Sans for your nightmares, in fact Sans had been the one who stayed up to keep you company and he had eventually helped them stop. You wanted to tell them that their monster family was ready to move at a moment’s notice, storming in here to save them.

“Thank you,” you said and your voice was heavy with emotion. “But that’s why we have to stop the monsters, Frisk. This war needs to end. It has been riddled with lies and false hope. It is time that things come to an end. I don’t want to be at war with the monsters. I want the truth to come out and I want peace and I’m going to need your help get all the pieces in order.”

 _I want peace too_ , Frisk wrote.

You let yourself smile genuinely, even if it was tinted with melancholy. Frisk wasn’t even an adult yet and still they had been caught up in all of this for years. It was a way too heavy burden on their young shoulders but they handled it so well. You knew they wanted to ask about the monsters you hadn’t mentioned, probably Toriel more than anyone, but you couldn’t give that information even if they asked. You couldn’t let on how much you had talked to the monsters and how far you had been let into their world.

“Do you understand _everything_ I have been trying to tell you this whole time?” you asked carefully and moved your hands to discreetly do the sign for opposite again.

Frisk’s eyes followed your hands for the briefest flicker and they gave you a careful nod.

“So you’re willing to talk to me? You’re willing to let me take you there?” you asked.

Frisk hesitated and then wrote on the white board.

_Maybe?_

“Sleep on it,” you said and ignored the banging the now came from the glass. Of course, Jeffords wanted you to keep going but you had plans of your own and they didn’t correspond with Frisk spilling the endless list of monster secrets undoubtedly living inside of their head.

“Tomorrow,” you said resolutely. “Get ready for tomorrow. I’ll be back for you.”

You got up from your seat and paused at the door, where the cameras couldn’t pick you up. As smoothly and quickly as possible you threw three signs that you had practiced beforehand.

Family.

Rescue.

Trust.

Frisk’s eyes widened a bit but you quickly turned and stepped through the door where you got an earful from Jeffords before you had even closed the door.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he screamed in your face, startling the interpreter. “That kid hasn’t signed or written anything to anyone in weeks and you decide to step away now? Giving them space? Tomorrow, they might have realized their mistake in talking and gone back to being mute! Metaphorically that is. Get back in there!”

“Excuse me but I was the one in there. I got a good read on the kid. Frisk needed time. They weren’t going to talk right now. You saw their answers. The same protect my family crap,” you said and cringed at the choice of words that you had to pretend didn’t unsettle you. “No way I would have gotten anywhere if I had pressed on. It’s better to come back later than ruin the opportunity.”

“And where did you learn to interrogate people? I put my neck on the line for this, to get you here and you better listen…”

“I didn’t learn to interrogate people but wasn’t that exactly the point? I have history with Frisk, I’ve met some of the monsters they consider family, I have an advantage and wasn’t it you who said the professional interrogators didn’t get anything out of them?”

“She does have a point, Professor Jeffords,” the interpreter interrupted. “I have been watching all of the interrogations and Frisk was far less guarded in their body language when she walked in. She might be your best play.”

“Fine!” Jeffords huffed out annoyed and then pulled himself together. “I suppose it was progress but I do not appreciate you taking out your earpiece. Next time that stays in so that I can come with suggestions.”

You didn’t like the idea one bit but you didn’t exactly plan on interrogating Frisk tomorrow. You planned to make a run for it. And you would just have a day to get Alphys into the computer system and locate Mettaton. Your day was far from over, even if you already felt exhausted.

“You’re going back to talk to Frisk, first thing in the morning,” Jeffords said.

“No problem. It’s a plan,” you said. “Now, in the mean time, I would love to get updated on what information we do have, so I’ll be better equipped to handle the interrogation. Perhaps we can go over some files in your office?”

Jeffords looked torn but then he caved. “I’ll send someone to fetch our summaries and we’ll go over them.”

It shouldn’t have come as a surprise to you but Jeffords’ new office matched his old one to almost exact detail. Books lining the walls, desk cluttered with papers, old cups of half drunk coffees sitting in a cluster in one corner. He never was a neat person, which had made working for him a bit of a hell.

He started clearing up, muttering under his breath that the cleaning should have done this for him. You didn’t intervene to say that they probably weren’t allowed into rooms where research was just laying carelessly out in the open, unless cleaners went through a security check beforehand too.

While he went to put the mugs of stale coffee in the kitchen you moved casually to the stationary computer, sitting down that his desk so that you could hold the ring on your finger against the computer.

You had scanned for cameras when you came in and hadn’t seen anyone but you could never be too careful in a place like this, so you tried to make it look like you had just sat down because you were feeling unsteady on your feet.

“Tomorrow,” you whispered under your breath, hoping the microphone in the ring could pick it up. “First thing probably means 9 AM.”

You didn’t say any of the other things that you wanted but those two felt safe enough. It could just be you pondering out loud. After a full minute of resting your ring to your ear you leaned forward, pulling your hand up to your cheek as if resting your head on it. However, you twisted your pointer ringer with the ring on it, as close to your ear as possible.

“Monsters,” you whispered, your voice cautious. Jeffords would be back any minute.

“Punk! You sneaky human!”

“WE HEARD FRISK!”

“are you okay?”

A small smile came to your lips naturally at the sound of the monsters you had come to care for.

“I-I’m in their system now. And h-human? Please try to f-find Mettaton t-too,” came a voice that quieted the other three voices that had been overlapping down.

“Promise,” you whispered. You could hear arguing on the other line, most Papyrus and Undyne shouting and bickering. It felt uplifting.

“we hear everything, doe. you’re doing great,” Sans’ voice came through and you felt some of the worry and tension ease away at his reassurances.

It was short-lived, however, because Jeffords came barging back into his office, two mugs of fresh coffee in hand and he didn’t look too thrilled to find you in his chair.

You made a move to get up, and made it seem much more difficult that it was.

“Sorry, I just needed to rest my legs,” you said.

“Understandable after the day you’ve had,” Jeffords commented and moved around one of the chairs next to his one and you sat down with a grateful expression.

“I should probably ask you if you feel up to the task but if you’re a true scientist you’ll just power through,” Jeffords noted and briefly, it felt like nothing had changed.

He had always been banging on that long hours and hard work came with the territory and if you couldn’t handle it then you should be an intern at his facility.

“I’m always up for a challenge,” you said. “Now, tell me what I need to know.”

Three hours later and it felt like your heard was swimming. Jeffords always had a tendency to over-speak but you got so much information that you didn’t mind. The human side had a lot more information about the monsters than you initially thought.

They didn’t know about any of the serious injuries caused to so many of the famous monsters from the bomb, thankfully, but over the years they had managed to learn a lot by hearsay.

Now Jeffords grinned like a kid with a new toy when he added the information you had confirmed about Sans’ powers. Seeing it jotted down in Sans’ file made your stomach turn but there wasn’t much you could do.

You eventually fell into the topic of Mettaton, which was something Jeffords couldn’t wait to boast about. It had just taken a tiny nudge and then he was running his mouth again.

“The robot is truly amazing. It will do anything you ask of it. It doesn’t think for itself anymore, despite the monster soul. Just blindly obeys like the perfect soldier.

He sounded so proud of it but it made you want to throw up. The charismatic Mettaton had adorned the television screen almost the moment the monsters emerged from the Underground. The monster had enchanted you before the war had started. To think that they made him into a mindless robot didn’t strike you as something you should be proud of.

“Is he here in the building?” you asked, feigning nonchalance.

“Indeed. He’s in his storage room on fourth floor. 404 or the error room as it was called before I came swooping in and fixed the software,” Jeffords said and chuckled to himself. “I’ll let you have a go at controlling him if you manage to get Frisk to give up new information. Think of it as a reward. A robot monster at your at your command, even if just for a hour. It’s quite the power trip.”

“Sounds awesome,” you said with fake enthusiasm, through slightly gridded teeth. At least, you now knew where to find the robot. How someone like Jeffords ever got such high security clearance was still a bit of a mystery to you or maybe you looked more approachable and innocent than you thought.

You spend a couple more hours going through the databases with Jeffords, someone coming by with sandwiches to the office without Jeffords even calling for it. When it became too late, Jeffords directed you back towards HR who would get you situated in one of the on-ground accommodations.

“Be ready at the interrogation room at 9 AM tomorrow. The interpreter and the previous interrogators will be there as well as myself. It’s about time Frisk stops holding out on us. I could never understand why a human would side with those abominations.”

“It’s unnatural,” you agreed, but you didn’t mean a word of it. Friendships across species were actually a quite wonderful and beautiful thing if he’d asked for your honest opinion.

When you finally made it to the small temporary bedroom, just a bed, a desk and a tiny bathroom, you felt ready to knock out. You were still too cautious to pull of your ring and put it properly in to your ear or speak loudly at the fear of being taped or recorded.

However, you plopped down on the bed and curled your arms behind your head, getting your ring near your ear again.

You didn’t need to go over the rescue mission or alter it. Everything had gone according to plan so far, almost swimmingly so. You had gained Jeffords’ trust, you had gotten to talk to Frisk and you knew where Mettaton was located. You had a sinking feeling that things wouldn’t keep being this easy.

“i can hear your breathing,” Sans’ voice came through the earpiece.

You huffed out a laugh, knowing he would pick up on it.

“alphys is working on getting the cameras out of function for tomorrow and undyne, pap, dogamy and dogaressa are out sparring to keep sharp.”

“Not you?” you whispered.

“did you forget that i’m lazybones just cuz my file doesn’t say it?”

There was a cold edge to his voice and your heart started hammering. He wouldn’t be mad, would he? It was vital information on them and besides you had known most of it already. He had told you himself.

“shit,” he cursed. “i just… ignore me. we knew what we signed up for. and it’s going to work, doe. we will be ready by the doors, alphys will cut the cameras and automatic locks at your signal. we will come in and cause mayhem – and no death – and you get frisk out to us. undyne will head for mettaton. we will all be wearing earpieces.”

You sighed, only slightly comforted. It still felt too easy. Something was bound to go wrong and you didn’t want to think about those consequences. You weren’t sure what you could do to help avoid it.

The following day, all your worries became validated when one of the worst things that could happen happened.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I missed Frisk! I'm so happy to have them back in the story. It's been breaking my heart to think about them in to POCAM centre and I'm sure our dear reader feels even more horrible holding onto the information for so long. What did you think of this chapter? I'm sorry for leaving it on a cliffhanger again and the fact that this story is getting so angsty around Christmas time but it was just the turns that the story wanted to take. Also, I'm back with modifying Sans' dialogue (it's a bit of a pain in my arse at times, but I still like it somehow). Do you guys care that his dialogue matches the one from the game or don't you care? (I'm curious).
> 
> Next update will be on Christmas Eve! (Christmas is in a week, damn. In Denmark, we celebrate Christmas on the 24th, so I'll be with family eating dinner and opening presents but I'll make sure to schedule this chapter for you guys.)
> 
> Also, I've been posting stuff every day in December so far, so if you want to keep up with my writing you can find me on tumblr [@secretlywritingstories](http://secretlywritingstories.tumblr.com) (where I post my writing) or at my main [@natigail](http://natigail.tumblr.com) where I post whatever I fancy and I answer asks and stuff. :)


	21. A Shocking Consequence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She wanted this whole undercover plan to be over and it found be in just a moment. Now she just had to cross her fingers that nothing would go awry but alas things seemed doomed to fail.

A quarter to 9 the following day, you walked over to the interrogation room. You had swung by the cafeteria for a quick bite for breakfast but your nerves had kept you from more than just a nibble. You hadn’t slept well; in fact you hadn’t slept much at all. Sans had stayed up on the line with you for a lot of the night, just chatting. It was odd to only be able to listen or say whispered words or changing your breath to reveal what you thought. You wanted to go back to all the nights on the sofa, mugs of tea in hand, as you learned to see the skeleton monster in a different light.

But there was no time for that right now. You had to be sensible and ready for what was to come. Seven minutes past 9 AM, Alphys would cut the cameras and sound the alarm. The monster team would be breaking down the doors, and Sans had confessed last night that he had gone back to fetch the royal guards as well as a dozen of Froggits to assist them. You felt safer with those numbers but also scared that it caused even more monsters to be in danger.

The room adjacent to the interrogation room wasn’t empty like you had expected. Instead, it was occupied by a guard that you recognized as the one who had been in charge of the operation of moving Frisk when you met them. You recalled the fury in the man’s eyes when he had yelled at you. When he saw you come in through the door, he glared at you.

“Hi,” you said, timidly. You couldn’t recall his name even though he had given it before.

“So, you’re the only one the little brat will talk to? Why am I not surprised? Perhaps, the kid does need a feminine touch,” the man sneered and you were about to open your mouth to argue when he kept talking. “Most stubborn criminal I have ever met and the kid is only sixteen. That or the monsters locked away their memories, which would mean you haven’t got a chance.”

You suddenly pinned down the underlying tones in his speech. Jealousy. Was he seriously jealous that you were given a go to make Frisk talk and had done better than he had for weeks? That was hardly something to be mad about. You were supposed to be on the same side. You weren’t but he, the man you had dubbed #1 when you met him, didn’t know that.

“I do not know exactly why Frisk would not talk to you but if I recall how you yanked them around when we first met, it’s hardly surprising.”

“They are a filthy monster sympathizer and the lot of them should be hanged. Going against their own kind in a time of war is inexcusable.”

Your chest tightened at this because that had been the exact reasoning that had kept your mouth shut for so very long when you had been in monster captivity. It had been how you had made excuses not to tell Sans, even as you begun to trust him. Monsters were objectively still the enemy and you had given them an in. You had allowed Alphys to hack into the system and you had been part of planning the attack that was just minutes away from happening. If the guard knew, you had a feeling he would strangle you where you stood.

Thankfully, the nice interpreter from last night showed up and that broke the tension a bit. As they acknowledged each other, you caught their names. The guard was called Ulric and the interpreter was Hannah. Jeffords wasn’t far behind and on the dot; two guards, which you recognized as the two missing guards from the trio, brought through Frisk. Frisk was looking at you with desperation in their eyes and sporting huge eye bags. Evidently, they didn’t get much sleep either.

You were handed the earpiece and promised to keep it in this time. You hadn’t planned on keeping that promise for very long as soon enough the plan would be set in motion. You acted causally as if you didn’t know any of this and walked into the interrogation room with a whiteboard and marker again, despite also having the interpreter in your ear.

You made sure to tilt your ear with the earpiece towards Frisk, so they were aware of the ears on you, as you sat down.

“Did you sleep okay?”

Frisk shrugged and bobbled their head a little side from side.

“I’m sorry I gave you so much to think about. I hadn’t intended to keep you up. But I assume that means that you understand the gravity of this?”

“Ask them about the whereabouts of the monster queen,” said Ulric in your ear and you could hear Jeffords protesting but you promptly ignored both of them.

“Yesterday, Frisk, you said that you wanted peace too. Do you still want that?”

Frisk nodded seriously and their expression exuded caution, as if they hadn’t quite decided whether or not to trust you yet. You couldn’t blame them. You wore the same ID as the others now and you hadn’t been very forthcoming with information about your history with the monsters. If you told Frisk, the others would know too and you couldn’t risk them sensing out your real intentions.

“Then I’m going to need you to tell me some stuff, okay? Either you can write it down or sign with your hands. It doesn’t matter. Why don’t we start with something simple? Which monsters did you leave the Underground with?”

Frisk hesitated, their hand flexing towards the marker but then pulling back. Frisk was frowning and they looked very much on edge.

“Don’t rush. We have all the time we need. Take a minute before you answer. It’s okay.”

“She is too soft!” you heard Ulric complain.

“Well, at least the kid isn’t shutting her out like they’ve done in every one of your sessions!” Jeffords countered.

You let your hand extend towards Frisk but didn’t reach past the middle of the table.

“No physical contact!” was shouted into your ear from one of the men in the room next to you but you just shook your head.

“You can trust me, Frisk. We’re on the same side,” you said. It was the words that your accomplices had been waiting for as a sign to start the attack.

Frisk sighed and then started signing very slowly. The interpreter translated into your earpiece.

“I left the Underground with six monsters and…”

Suddenly, the alarm started blaring so much that Frisk jolted and put their hands over their ears. You heard shouts from the other room and rose to your feet. You opened the door but you lingered in the doorway and kept it open so that Frisk could also hear what was going on. You were still terrified you’d be asked to leave, so you didn’t want to give anyone the idea that you should be moved away from Frisk.

“What is going on?” you asked, hanging in the doorframe.

“Highest security breach,” Jeffords explained and you saw how all the color had drained from his face. He looked petrified. “Monster attack on the base.”

Ulric was shouting something to #2 and #3 who had waited outside and then he turned to glare at you. He looked suspicious as hell and you worried that your cover might have been blown. Hopefully, it wouldn’t matter if you all made it out unscathed in a moment.

“This means lockdown. You three civilians stay here. Frisk is to be locked in the interrogation room. Moving them would be too high a risk. Do not leave this room!” Ulric commanded before he took off, only to pause and glare at you some more. “Don’t you dare leave!”

However, the second the door shut you in, Jeffords started gathering his things and he was definitely getting ready to leave.

“Just lock Frisk in and get moving. I am not standing in the way when those murderous monsters come trampling through here. I value my life too much. Are you coming?” he asked the two of you.

“We were told to stay put,” you said in a small voice, which could hardly be heard over the blaring alarm. It just made Jeffords snort.

“I’m not staying here to be slain by a monster,” he said and walked over to lock the door to the interrogation room as he pulled you forward, effectively separating you from Frisk.

However, Jeffords was just as careless with his codes as always and you saw the combination easily.

With that, Jeffords left the room. You should see through the window that Frisk was signing frantically in the chair and you turned to the interpreter, who looked terrified.

“They are saying that their friends are coming to get them and no one should stay in their way,” she said, sounding every bit as terrified as Jeffords had looked.

“You should leave too,” you suggested, which made Hannah frown in confusion.

“What about you? You just got away from them, right? They should be furious with you. You are probably the one who led them here!”

She had no idea how right she was but there was no accusing in her voice, so you took that to mean that it she meant in an accidental way.

“Just leave, Hannah,” you pleaded now. “I fear Frisk is right. You do not want to mess with monsters. But they it isn’t sure they’ll know where to find Frisk, so I’ll probably be fine. You could stay but I would say that your best bet is to move as soon as possible.”

Hannah nodded, looking less frazzled and more in control now. “I don’t get paid enough for this shit anyway and I did not sign up for monster attacks.”

As soon as she was out the door, you twisted off your ring after releasing the clasp mechanism and you thrust it into your hear.

Instantly, you were bombarded with Undyne’s battle cry and the general sounds of violence. You prayed that Sans had remembered his promise about no human deaths and the other monsters had followed his lead.

You unlocked the door and Frisk jumped to their feet, seemingly having gotten out of their restraints themselves. You cracked a genuine happy smile for the first time, only after confirming that the surveillance indeed was turned off like Alphys had promised.

“I’m helping them, Frisk. Sans. Undyne. Papyrus. They’re all here to get you. We’re getting you home.”

Frisk did one of the signs that you did know.

Family.

And then they followed up with thank you. You just smiled.

“No one should be held against their will, let alone a minor just trying to do the right thing,” you said and extended your hand, which Frisk took after a moment of hesitation. You moved out into the hallway.

“Everyone? It’s Doe. I have Frisk. We’re heading to the planned exit now.”

“C-change of plan!” Alphys shouted in your ear. “Undyne is tied up in the battle. Y-you have to find Mettaton, please.”

“Roger that,” you said to Alphys before turning on your heal and heading for the stairs. Frisk followed you lead. You were a bit scared at the prospect but now wasn’t a time to be afraid.

“We’re going to get Mettaton first, Frisk,” you explained as you were rushing up the stairs as fast as your legs would carry you. It was distracting to have the sounds of battle and injury in your ear but you didn’t dare turn it down.

“404, 404,” you muttered under your breath as you came out onto the empty hallway. “Hey Alphys, keep an eye out of guards heading our way?” you asked.

“C-confirmed, human,” Alphys said in your ear. “404 should be just down the hall on your left side.”

You followed the instructions to the room but it was predictably locked. You thought about swiping your ID card but you undoubtedly didn’t have access.

“You don’t have any magic powers that can knock down a steel door by any chance, right, Frisk?” you asked.

The teenager looked mildly offended as they shook their head.

Additionally to the scanner, there was also the number pad and you tried the code that Jeffords had used to lock Frisk in. He loved the concept of master codes at the research facility where you had both worked and it seemed like he hadn’t changed when the door clicked open.

Mettaton was standing, seemingly turned off in the small storage room, which should probably just have been called a closet.

“Any idea how to wake him? And be careful, Jeffords spoke about him being reprogrammed,” you told Frisk, who stepped forward without any sign of fear despite your warning.

Frisk spun the robot around and looked at the many flip switches that were at the back of the robot. You recalled seeing the back of Mettaton years ago on television and then there had only been one main switch. It seemed like the humans had been busy since then.

“We found Mettaton,” you said on the common line. “He’s turned off but we’re working on it. How are things holding up in your end?”

“delightful,” Sans noted but his voice was strained and he sounded exhausted.

“DON’T MIND, SANS. HE’S JUST BEING OVERLY DRAMATIC,” Papyrus chimed in and unlike Sans, Papyrus seemed to act perfectly like himself. “WE HAVE MANAGED TO SUBDUE ALMOST ALL THE HUMAN GUARDS. UNDYNE IS HEADING FOR YOU NOW.”

At least that was good news. You wouldn’t mind having Undyne in your corner if Mettaton suddenly thought it was a good idea to obey the programs the humans likely had infested him with.

Frisk kept flipping switches around and you wondered if they knew what they were doing but suddenly Mettaton’s lights turned on. He beeped to life.

“I am Mettaton 2.0. Please scan your ID card,” the robot monster said and extended something that looked like a scanner from out of his chest.

You hesitated, as Frisk watched around the robot and started signing widely in Mettaton’s face.

“Sign language detected. Please show ID card,” Mettaton repeated as _Scan ID card_ flashed in the panel on his chest.

“I’m not sure my ID card has access to control Mettaton,” you said worriedly as you suddenly heard fast footsteps coming down towards you. You were just about to shout at Alphys for not warning you when you recognized Undyne’s battle cry. So did Frisk it seemed, because the teenager started running only to run directly into an already sprinting Undyne.

“Frisk!” she exclaimed and she sounded absolutely delighted as they collided and it somehow turned into a hug. “Little punk, it has been way too long. Don’t you ever do that to me again or I’ll rip your head off. You scared us half to death!”

“Please present ID card, or alarm will commence in 30 seconds,” Mettaton warned and Frisk and Undyne broke apart.

“Why does Mettaton sound like that? He usually has so much more flair in his voice. Pesazz! Lights. Action. Drama.”

“Oh, he’s apparently still dramatic,” you noted as the chest plate was now showing the countdown. Seeing no other option, you moved your ID card to his scanner.

“New employee,” Mettaton beeped. “Contacting immediate superior for authorization confirmation.”

“No, no! Don’t do that!” you hissed. Your immediate superior was likely Jeffords and if he suddenly got a request that you wanted to access Mettaton it would not be good.

“Listen to me, you rust bucket,” Undyne threatened. “You are Alphys’ creation and I demand you stop this nonsense and come with us at once!”

“Abort command!” you tried telling him before you turned to speak to the earpiece. “Alphys! Any override commands for Mettaton?”

“Ah, ah. I did make a v-vocal override. Get me within h-hearing range and turn it all the way up,” she requested and she sounded oddly embarrassed. However, now was not the time to dwell on it, so you simply did as you were told.

“Kissy Kissy Mew Mew Undyne!” Alphys said over the line and suddenly the demeanor of Mettaton changed.

“Alphys, really?” Undyne groaned and looked like she was turning pink, even with her blue complexion.

“Ultimate overwrite initiated,” he said still sounding mechanic. “Errors. Mistake. Conflicting programming. Mettaton requests orders.”

“You have to get out of this building and follow Undyne,” you said in an even voice as you put your earpiece back in.

“Order affirmed. Follow Undyne. Undyne detected,” Mettaton said as he scanned Undyne.

“Keep your weird light away from me!” Undyne threatened.

You caught Frisk’s eye and the teenager smiled the brightest they had done yet. They looked so happy and it was startling to see the difference from how they had been glaring at you with mistrust since yesterday.

They saw that you were looking at them and did the sign for thank you again, as well as some other signs that you couldn’t distinguish.

“You overestimate my abilities to understand sign language, Frisk, but I got the first part. Unfortunately, it’s too early to celebrate.”

“Commence mission!” Mettaton announced and started trailing around after Undyne who started running around in circles with the robot monster on her ass.

“He’s right we need to get out of here.”

“He needs to get off my back!” Undyne complained.

“Fine. Mettaton, I have a new order. You follow Frisk instead,” you said.

“Mission alteration accepted,” Mettaton beeped and scanned Frisk instead.

“We should split up,” Undyne suggested. “They always say that in the movies.”

“We are not splitting up,” you said sternly. “That’s how they die in movies, Undyne. Now just get moving, we need to get to Sans and Papyrus.”

Your group of four started moving through the halls, ducking in and out of rooms at Alphys’ warning. You had made it back to the ground floor in one piece but there you stopped in your track at the mayhem in front of you.

Dozen and dozen of men and women in guard uniforms were scattered over the floor. Sans was standing in the middle with his left eye ablaze. Papyrus was trying to chat to some of the humans that weren’t knocked out but tied up instead. Froggits hopped around while Dogamy, Dogaressa and the royal guards were nowhere to be seen.

When Sans spotted the four of you, the blue in his eye flickered and his strained grin expanded into a genuine one. He wasn’t in his usual blue hoodie, shorts and slippers; instead he was wearing black tactical gear matching the rest of the group. Papyrus spotted you at the same time, excusing himself from the chat with the very-confused looking humans, as he leapt over to swoop Frisk into his arms.

“I THOUGHT WE HAD LOST YOU, FRISK. BUT YOU ARE HERE. YOU ARE OKAY!” Papyrus said and he sounded like he was crying. “YOU HAVE BEEN SINCERELY MISSED, MY FRIEND.”

It was heartwarming to see Papryus and Frisk hug, even if the hug meant that Frisk was just lifted off the floor and held in Papyrus’ arms. Frisk looked so happy. You turned your attention back to Sans, who had gone suddenly still.

“brace yourself,” he said, glancing briefly in your direction before an invisible boom of energy moved out from his core. You saw how the humans it passed over fell into unconsciousness. For a beat, you worried that it was a deadly force but you knew it must just be another knockout trick. It seemed like he effectively made everyone fall asleep.

You hadn’t noticed as you had been focusing on Sans but Undyne had put herself between you and Sans so she sort of broke the full impact, even if you felt drowsy as it passed through you.

“we’re done here. let’s go,” Sans ordered. “they others are holding open a path but we need to move before reinforcements arrive.”

“S-sans!” interrupted Alphys on the common line. “This p-place is where they store all the monster files! I-if you could get my ring into t-the server room, I c-could erase it!”

Sans looked about ready to rip off the earpiece taped to the side of his skull near his earhole.

“it’s too risky, alph,” Sans said sternly. “we need to get pap, frisk and doe out of here.”

You were extremely surprised to be grouped together with his brother and the teenager he clearly cared for. Since when had you gained that privilege?

“B-but this might be our o-only chance!” Alphys argued over the radio.

“But Alphys is right, Sans. If we can delete everything they have on us, we can set them back months, if not years!” Undyne argued.

It didn’t sit right with you to delete information. That was the scientist in you but you were at a time of war and information was a very powerful weapon. It would be another act of treason but unfortunately you were stacking those up like Jenga pieces.

“Undyne will take Papyrus, Frisk and Mettaton out while you have an open path. Sans and I’ll go to the server room and he can teleport us out afterwards,” you suggested.

Both Undyne and Sans turned to look at you with mixes of wonder and worry but you could see when they both caved. Undyne and Sans were the best fighters and if you were to split up, it was best they were on separate teams and you would have to use Sans’ magic to escape.

You had thankfully studied the blueprints of the building as soon as you had gotten you hands on them and you knew exactly where you needed to go.

“Come on,” you said and extended a hand towards Sans. He stared at your outstretched hand before carefully reaching forward and closing his boney fingers around your human ones.

“undyne, get them all safe. we’ll see you at the safe house.”

“You’re not the boss of me, Sans,” Undyne argued. “But okay.”

“SANS, I THINK I SHOULD GO WITH YOU TOO AND…”

“no, pap. you look after frisk, okay? i’ll be fine.”

Papyrus didn’t seem to like separating from his brother one bit. “DOE, YOU BETTER PROTECT HIM.”

“I will, Pap,” you promised and you determinedly ignored the sinking feeling in your stomach because how could you promise him that?

Not wanting to waste any more time, you started running down the hall, back the way you had come, now with Sans dragging after you by your interlocked hands. Finding the server room was easy enough and Sans simply used his magic to rip the door out of the hinges. It would probably have made the alarm sound but that had finally turned off after Alphys had disabled the sound as to not distract you as you’d gone to find Mettaton.

“Alphys, tell me where the ring needs to go.”

“T-there should be a computer somewhere. Your ring will fit into a USB port,” she informed you.

Sans found the computer quickly and as soon as you plugged in the earpiece, the screen turned on and showed a progress bar filling all to slowly for your liking. Sans had taken off his earpiece and given it to you.

“Oh, no!” Alphys suddenly exclaimed and you looked at the computer but that was moving along steadily. “A guard, there’s a guard just…”

The line crackled and you heard the booming voice of a man you recognized. Sans had been faster in his reactions and pulled you out of sight behind one of the servers.

“Don’t think I’m blind, skeleton. I saw you and your little inside man, or should I say woman. She really had everyone fooled but not me,” Ulric said, his voice cold and hard. “She looks way too innocent to be capably of betrayal like that.”

Sans stepped forward and rage was evident in his face.

“you’re a fool if you think we need to depend on other humans to kick your ass,” Sans said, even from your hidden position, you could see him raise his hand with his eye ablaze again. Only nothing was happening. Sans’ face fell and he stepped back uncertain.

“Having performance issues? Tough,” said Ulric and you heard the discharge of a gun. Your heart leapt into your throat and you want to spring forward to pull Sans away from the danger but you were too far away to reach him.

He came skidding back, flung across the floor and he was gasping. You found yourself frantically checking if he was injured but you could see anything on his clothing or skull.

“he missed,” Sans huffed out, “but i wanted him to think that I was hit.”

Relief was instantaneous but it also didn’t last more than a nanosecond.

“You’re done for, monster. We’ve been working on a little something to neutralize your pesky powers. It’s a little fairer on the battlefield, isn’t it? Come out here. I’d love to break your bones until you’re nothing more than dust.”

Sans looked horrified and then his face went into concentration before he looked genuinely terrified.

“i can’t make a shortcut,” he whispered under his breath.

His shortcuts. Your way out. Without them, you would never be able to get out of here once the reinforcements arrived, if you even managed to get past Ulric.

You heard the fall of military boots and you were yanking up Sans by his shirt and pulling him along, behind a new server and out of sight. But you were way too far to make a run for the door.

“Alphys, any help? Sans’ magic doesn’t work!” you hissed into Sans’ earpiece which you still had in your palm.

But there was just silence on the line. You couldn’t even hear anything from Papyrus or Undyne’s lines. It seemed like someone had finally intercepted your communication.

“It’s dead,” you whispered to Sans.

Sans looked defeated and it was never a look you thought you would see on him. It hurt and you wanted so desperately to help but you were both beyond screwed.

“I saw your human pet too. Where is she, Sans? Did you Stockholm Syndrome her or was she already a filthy monster sympathizer when you took her?” Ulric taunted and he was moving again.

You didn’t like that Sans had gone quiet and you should see that he was thinking by the way his pinpricks move back and forward slightly.

“you have to take me in,” he whispered as he grabbed hold of your arm and moved you again as Ulric turned another corner.

“What?” you hissed in a whisper. “I will not.”

“it’s the only way. he’s furious and ready to rip me to shreds. without my magic and without playing to win with bloodshed, i can’t beat him. if you take me in, you might convince them you’re still on their side.”

Sans was speaking as a matter of fact and all emotion had drained out of his voice. His pinpricks had vanished now and the look in his entirely black eye sockets gave you chills.

“Sans, if they can neutralize your magic, you might never get out of here. You heard him, they already don’t trust me.”

“then it is just the sacrifice for freeing frisk and undyne. i’m okay with that.”

“You don’t suit being a martyr,” you whispered and frowned. You were not okay with Sans spending his life in human captivity, if he would not even survive very long. They might accidentally kill him because they didn’t know about his 1 HP situation. It was too risky. And you wouldn’t allow him to die either.

“frisk will set time right,” Sans said.

“You don’t know that!” you argued.

You did not have faith in resetting magic, even if Sans seemed to. It seemed stupid to build a plan based on someone being able to go back and reset time. It was further foolish because Frisk had been unable to do it after the bombing, supposedly because of the trauma. But how could Sans know that Frisk would ever regain the ability? You were not willing to risk his life on this but it didn’t seem like you had much of a choice.

Sans took the useless earpiece from you and squashed it between his thumb and index finger.

“here,” Sans said and pulled out a pair of handcuffs that he handed over to you. They were identical to the ones Alphys had made you wear the first time you entered the laboratory back in New New Home.

“it’s the only way, doe. please.”

You didn’t want to. You were so tired of pretending to hate monsters and laugh at all the horrible demeaning monster jokes Jeffords had been throwing at you during your research session the day before. This was supposed to be over. You should have all gotten out.

However, it was Sans’ call and you couldn’t come up with a better plan. Reluctantly, you cuffed his hands behind his back. On a whim, you reached up, resting your hand against the side of his skull and you traced your thumb over his cheekbone. His eye sockets went wider and he leaned into your touch, almost unnoticeably.

“I promise I’ll do everything in my power to get you out of here, Sans.”

His skull moved under your hand as his mouth curved into a more crooked smile.

“i believe you.”

You took a steadying breath before grabbing hold of his cuffed hands with one hand and putting the other against his neck. He shuddered against you but didn’t comment on the manhandling. You had to distance yourself and step into the role that you didn’t like one bit. However, now it was even more paramount that you stayed in their good graces if you would have any chance of helping Sans.

Ulric looked about to lose the grip on his gun when he saw you step out with Sans.

“Stupid monster didn’t notice I picked his pocket,” you declared and tried to sound smug. “Sometimes, they really are as dumb as animals, right?”

He still looked suspicious but he was grinning now. It was nothing like Sans’ different grins which you had become familiar with over the past month. Ulric’s was cold and mean.

“Captured by a little girl, huh? The almighty skeleton monster my ass. I don’t know about you, girl, but you’re definitely something. Move him this way,” Ulric said.

The praise felt like a cold splash of water right into your face but you did as you were told. You were back in the role of the obedient monster hating human. You could not allow yourself any missteps, or you would be removed with certainty.

Sans struggled against your hold as you forced him to move forward and you wanted nothing more than to turn him around and wrap him into a hug. But he was trapped and so were you.

Only time would tell if you could get out of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone. Here in Denmark we celebrate on the 24th, so I'm currently munching on Christmas food when this update goes up. 
> 
> Sorry for all the angst in this joyous season and the cliffhanger. Also, anyone happy I brought back the guard from the first chapter? What do you think will happen to Sans in captivity? How will the humans react to the reader? Will she be able to get Sans out of there? As always, I would love any feedback. 
> 
> Next update will be on Sunday the 31st of December and we'll be waving goodbye to 2017!


	22. A Caught Monster

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The worst possible thing had happened and she had no idea how to save him or herself. She was all on her own without any communication with the monsters and she was so tried of pretending to hate them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: mild violence

You hadn’t wanted to leave Sans’ side but after you had shoved him into one of the holding cells, Ulric had commanded it and you didn’t have much choice but to obey.

That didn’t stop your thoughts from drifting to Sans. He’d never explicitly told you but you had a feeling that being retrained was one of his worst nightmares. He’d mentioned feeling trapped in his nightmare a couple of times and it only seemed natural that a monster who could literally go anywhere he wanted by just thinking of it, wouldn’t be happy to be bound to one place.

You were sat in an interrogation room for over an hour before anyone came to see you. You desperately wished that you still had any way of getting into contact with the others. Had everyone else made it out okay? You were so worried for Undyne, Papyrus, Frisk and the other monsters but you had no way of finding out. Your ring was still stuck in the computer and you knew it was just a matter of time before that came back to bite you in the ass. It had unfolded and flattened when it came into contact with the USB port but if the managed to get it out, it would probably revert back to a ring.

Finally, the door opened and both Jeffords and Ulric walked in. Neither of them looked very happy.

“I say that you’re just a filthy monster sympathizer but your dear colleague think I’ve got it wrong, so you’re getting a chance to explain yourself,” Ulric said. “And it better be good, little missy.”

“I know the monsters can be scary. Just tell us what happened,” Jeffords said in a much calmer note.

You gathered up the story you had planned when you had been sitting here. You had stayed behind after Jeffords and Hannah had left. Undyne had come crashing in and demanding you unlocked the door to Frisk. You had done so under duress. Then the fish monster had dragged you and Frisk off to find Mettaton, where Undyne had tried to access the robot monster with your ID card. It turned out that the monsters had contact to someone at home – you purposely made it seem like you didn’t know who – and they had managed to override the human made code in Mettaton. Then Undyne had taken you to join up with the rest of the monsters and Sans had made his way to the server room, taking you to use you as a hostage. You could tell that Jeffords was eating it raw while Ulric still looked skeptical.

“I wonder why Sans would think it a good idea to bring a hostile human along, perhaps he thought he could use you as a human shield?” Jeffords pondered out loud.

“I think the monster did it because she’s working with them. The monsters have never known about this secret base before and then a day after we take her in, they storm the place and take our two most valuable assets and wipe our servers!” Ulric exclaimed and then slammed his hand on the table so much that Jeffords half-drunk coffee toppled over the side, spilling its content all over the floor. “You are working with them, aren’t you?”

“I am _not_ ,” you said adamantly, lying through your teeth. “They kidnapped me. They used me. I thought I escaped from them. I’m sorry if this was some elaborate plan from them that I couldn’t see through. Monsters were supposed to be vicious animals, not capable of such highly intelligent plans!”

It felt like fire in your mouth to spit out those words. But it was the way the media often portrayed monsters.

“I must extend my sympathies, I know you’ve been through a lot but your input on our captured skeleton might be invaluable, if you are willing to stay on,” Jeffords said.

“Stay on? Are you insane, professor? That girl is nothing but trouble. I want her out of here immediately and preferably labeled as a monster sympathizer before the day is over.”

“Falling victim to monsters does not make one a sympathizer,” Jeffords said. “She has provided some valuable insight, insight we will need even more now that most of our recorded date has been deleted. And frankly, my dear POCAM guard, I outrank you.”

If this was a cartoon, smoke would have been escaping from both of Ulric’s hears.

“You might have everyone charmed, princess, but I don’t trust you. I request that she is always under observation when near the skeleton monster. I’m telling you they are in cahoots.”

“Fine,” Jeffords agreed casually. “No one is allowed unsupervised interaction with captured monsters anyway. Now, tell me about this Undyne monster again.”

It took further three hours before you were allowed to see Sans and then it was only through a window. He was strapped down to a bed. He was naked, nothing but bones and it felt wrong to look at him like that. Strapped up like a carcass ready for dissection. He’d told you, playfully, that his body wasn’t really all bones. He could use his magic to make it seem like he had more of a human body. It seemed that next to the fated magic neutralizing disk, that you had gotten Jeffords to tell you about, it was making him look like just bones. Sans looked like he was sleeping, so they probably managed to sedate him somehow.

Jeffords was keen to move on but you asked if you could get just a little while alone, outside of the room, since you weren’t allowed inside without supervision.

“Why would you want that? We need to go over you…”

“I just,” you interrupted. “I need to process it, you know? He’s my kidnapper and now he’s the one in captivity. And the monsters coming back were my worst nightmare. I thought I had gotten away but they came right back.”

Jeffords nodded. “I suppose that makes sense. I’ll see you in my office in ten minutes. The monster’s room is under surveillance, so don’t try anything and don’t be late,” he barked before leaving you in the little viewing room. It had originally been one of the apparently endless interrogation rooms. Only behind the glass was a bed with Sans in it rather than a desk and chairs.

The door opened and you thought it was Jeffords coming back but you were surprised to see Madelyn instead and she seemed equally, if not more surprised to see you.

“Oh, what… what are you doing here?” she asked.

“Just,” you tried to come up with something but you were drawing a complete blank. “I don’t know,” you whispered and turned your attention back to the glass. You weren’t really looking at Sans’ exposed body. Rather you were staring at the wall wondering when everything had gotten so complicated.

“I was told you didn’t need a medical check but are you feeling okay?” Madelyn asked.

“I’m fine,” you said, voice even and cold and your reply automatic.

“You don’t look fine.”

You ignored her statement. “You should cover his exposed bones,” you said hesitantly. “It is… They always were quite decent to me and that’s just seems demeaning.”

“But they are just animals, are they not?” Madelyn pressed and you had a feeling she was asking to get a reaction out of you. You should probably be careful how you played your cards but you were already so tired after your interrogation by Ulric and Jeffords.

“They wear clothes,” you said simply because if you started saying too much you weren’t sure how you’d be able to stop.

“I’ll put a sheet over his lower body. Are you sure you don’t need a check up or just someone to talk to? I sort of double as a therapist at times,” Madelyn told you.

“I have to be fine,” you said and let your eyes fall from the wall to Sans for the briefest of moments.

He looked whole enough for now but what would happened if they’d try to torture him and go too far and make him turn into dust? Sans was truly the last monster who should have been captured by vicious humans.

You were biting at your nails nervously and you felt Madelyn’s eyes on you but you didn’t want to turn to meet her eyes.

“I best be going. I’m sure you have to check him over,” you said and moved towards the door while you kept your eyes downcast. It was easier to pretend around the likes of Ulric who came at you with so much hostility or Jeffords who desperately wanted to believe that you were just like him. Someone like Madelyn, who just watched and asked soft-spoken questions, was much more dangerous.

“Is there anything I should know?” she asked you and made you pause before you opened the door. It could be a trap to get you to reveal that you knew more than you could possibly have known without becoming close to the monsters.

“He’s a decent monster,” you settled on, even if it wasn’t the adjective you wanted to use at all. “Just be… gentle? Despite everything, he wasn’t harmful towards me.”

“I thought you said that he gave you bruises,” Madelyn pressed.

“Accidents,” you admitted in a small voice. “The monsters did kidnap me and hold me against my will but they were surprisingly decent about it. And I fear that the situation will not be the same now that the roles are reversed.”

“Do you…”

“Please,” you interrupted. “I don’t know what you want to ask but just… please don’t. I’m under emotional stress. I don’t know what I’m saying. Just ignore me, okay?”

Madelyn looked baffled but you left the room before you said more stupid things. You went to meet up at Jeffords’ office as arranged.

You went over strategies together and halfway through, you were joined by eight more people who were all some of the top monster researchers in the world. You felt awed to be in the same room as them; however, you didn’t like it under the circumstances. You looked out for your old professor, secretly hoping he would be part of the crew that had been called in but he wasn’t there.

It was especially uncomfortable when Jeffords relayed the tale of your kidnapping and you felt what it was like to have calculating and analytical eyes on you. It wasn’t a pleasant experience but it was what gave you a seat at the table and you couldn’t shy away from it.

It was unanimously agreed that the first goal was to get Sans to reveal how to overpower New New Home, so that the human military could annihilate the monster base. Surprisingly, the was also decided that you would be the one to speak to Sans, at least in the first try because of “your history” with him.

They didn’t even know half of it.

You slept terrible that night. You kept twisting and turning and you realized what a privilege it had been to be able to put your ring up to your ear and listen to Sans waffle. Would you ever get to hear that him talk like that again?

You were out of your room at 6 AM and in the cafeteria where you simply filled a bowl of cereal with milk and started eating, even though you didn’t have any appetite. Just your luck, Ulric and his two guards were up early too.

The tried to speak to you, get you riled up by calling your names but you just let it bounce off. That was literally the least of your problems. It was a problem yes but it paled in comparison with your other life and death problems.

“I heard you’re talking to your beloved skeleton monster today,” Ulric noted. “Just know I’ll be watching like a hawk on the surveillance footage. You bat an eyelash the wrong way and you’re done for, little monster sympathizer.”

“Can you go harass someone who isn’t recovering from kidnapping and having to confront her kidnapper?”

That effectively shut down #2 and #3 and partly Ulric, though he huffed out a breath and mumbled something you didn’t catch. It felt wrong to say it but in a sense it was the truth. That was how it had started out. Sans had kidnapped you and yet you now regarded him as a friend. A friend you’d risk your reputation and potentially your life for.

Was there something wrong with you? Was it some sort of twisted Stockholm Syndrome? The monsters had kidnapped you and now you were voluntarily working with them. You actively chose the few monsters you knew over the human race as a whole.

It was dangerous thoughts to let in at the moment but it had been coming sooner or later. You had changed your mind about monsters and you were now helping them.

Your government was lying and deceitful but they were still your fellow humans. In your effort and want to help, had you sided yourself incorrectly?

You spent your time until you had a time to see Sans pacing around the halls and trying to think as little as possible about the other monsters. You had gotten it confirmed by the research team last night. Everyone had made it out safely, except you and Sans but obviously they didn’t know about your loyalties. Furthermore, Alphys’ program had completely whipped the whole database. It had been a successful mission, except for Sans’ capture and the fact that you had to stay undercover.

When you walked back into the room where you’d been surprised by Madelyn the day before, you wanted to turn around and walk straight out. The room was filled to capacity and someone had lined up chairs, with little fold up tables attached, in two rows in front of the viewing window. All the researchers you had met yesterday had already taken their seats and all heads turned to you when you walked in.

“There she is,” Jeffords acclaimed and he sounded way too chipper. “Are you ready? Do you remember all the things we discussed? Don’t be afraid to poke at him. He’s perfectly retained.”

You clenched your teeth and nodded. His words were meant to reassure you but they had the adverse effect.

“Go manipulate that monster scum,” Jeffords said in a more hushed voice and gave your shoulder a light push forward. Gulping, you reached out for the door and stepped through.

You weren’t looking at Sans, as you leaned back against the door as you closed it behind you. You would have to somehow break the disk sitting in the corner. But you had no idea whether a good smash to the floor would break it or simply make it obvious what you were trying to do.

Jeffords had been evasive whenever you had tried to ask him about the science of the power neutralization disk. You suspected it was because he hadn’t invented it and he was being pity about it. However, you couldn’t call him out on it or draw too much attention to your need to understand the disk.

When you finally looked in Sans’ direction, you met his hollow eye sockets. He looked absolutely furious. Madelyn had done what she had promised and covered his lower body with a sheet that went from the middle of his ribcage to all the way to his toes.

“you again,” Sans spoke and his voice was meant to terrify you and it did. It felt like ages since he’d used that voice on you and it wasn’t memories that you wanted to relive. “i should’ve killed you when i had the chance.”

You were both playing a part but his words went right to your heart. Mostly because objectively he might have been spared so much trouble if you hadn’t been there. Sans had been ready to deny Aphys and Undyne’s request to go back and erase the database. It was only when you had jumped on board that Sans had agreed.

“You look a lot less scary like this,” you said, as you walked up to his table. “Exposed. Powerless. It’s a new look on you. You ought to remember who calls the shots now.”

You were trying to sound threatening and you weren’t sure how well you were faring. However, Sans’ expression, if possible, durned even darker.

“you like being the one who can exert power this time? you like how the tables have turned on the horrible monster who took you? huh?” Sans asked and he didn’t sound at all like himself. It was like he was a different person.

However, you had come to know him and you saw through the cracks. There was probably some truth to his words because he was genuinely scared. You couldn’t ask him but you suspected that he was more worried about what would happen to Papyrus and his friends if he ceased to exist. He could be oddly self-sacrificing when it came to the people he loved.

“Was it worth it? For a human? All your little friends got out and left you. How do you know Frisk hasn’t turned on you?” you asked and strolled around the bed, tracing your finger along the edge. It was partly to calm your nerves by pacing but it could objectively also been seen as an emphasis that Sans was held in place while you were free to walk around.

“family don’t betray family,” Sans said.

“Family? Don’t be silly, Sans. Humans and monsters can’t be family. It’s the reason humans who side with you are either imprisoned or exiled from humanity. We’re at war with each other,” you said untruthfully. It was something to establish your stance, to not let them get suspicious of your loyalties. As you strolled around the bed, you kept glancing discreetly at the disk and trying to figure out how you could get to it inconspicuously.

“the war is wrong. monsters only wish to end it.”

“Tsk, tsk. You’re the one wiping out villages. You personally and your kind as a whole,” you said and hoped that Sans would take the bait. A lot of bright minds were listening to your conversation and if you could plant a seed with them, it might eventually bloom into a flower of understanding.

“we do not. i don’t. it’s lies. we fight back but don’t use deadly force unless necessary. we could never harm a whole city of innocents. go back. check the records. whatever you think you know, you don’t.”

You fiddled with the earpiece as Jeffords instructed you to stay on topic and ask about New New Home’s defenses.

“Sans, you must know this will only end one way. You erased our information, so you’ll have to give us new information in return. Perhaps about New New Home.”

“no,” Sans said and his expression matched the one he wore when he was wielding powerful magic. If he had been able, you had no doubt that his left eye would be burning blue.

“You will be tortured, Sans. You have made a lot of people angry. You are a murderer and a monster. They will not hold back. It would be a smarter decision to be open with us.”

“i wouldn’t betray my own,” Sans said furiously but the second the words left him, his expression fell into shame. He looked on the brink of saying something more but he was holding himself back.

You hardly noticed his expression because you felt like you had the wind knocked out of you. That was what you were doing. You were betraying your own kind for his. You were plotting against the government, even if it was in all likelihood corrupt.

Sans clearly hadn’t meant to sling out the words. It seemed like more of a reflex but it hit you so hard because you should have had that same reflex but it had been eluding you lately.

“That’s noble,” you said, gulping, and your voice was only shaking a little. “But is that not what your friend Frisk is doing? It is okay when it’s a human turning against their own?”

“it’s different. we are a close community of few monsters. you’re billions.”

“And yet, you continue to have the upper hand in this war? Is it just the magic? Something more? It’ll be easier to tell me now until it’s one of those POCAM guards coming in here with a hammer ready to smash up your bones.”

“i’m quite sturdy,” Sans lied and you almost wanted to laugh. He said it so confidently that you would have believed him, unless you knew the truth.

You couldn’t keep this dance going. You had to make a move. Jeffords and the other researchers were in your ear, mostly silent except the odd prompts that you had ignored.

You turned your back to Sans and watched the disk. Smashing it on the floor would have to do. It would show everyone your true colors indefinitely. It would show everyone that you were one of those humans turning against their own kind.

But it was much bigger than that. It wasn’t just about getting Sans out of here before he was dusted, though that was a big priority for you. You wanted to be able to change humanity’s point of view. You silently wondered if this action would ensure that no one would ever listen to what you had to say ever again.

You walked back up to the bed Sans was strapped too.

“You’re foolish if you think you can last in here for long,” you said and you let your façade slip away a bit and your voice turn softer. “When you had taken me, I kept thinking that there was only two options. Either you’d eventually kill me or I’d escape. I was wrong.”

You reached out to trace a thumb over Sans’ cheekbone, just like you had done in server room before you had cuffed him and agreed to play this show once again. You were so done playing. Sans’ eyes went wider and he leaned into the gesture slightly.

It was fucking up your mind to have all these thoughts and having to say words that you didn’t believe but maybe they still hit a little too close for comfort.

You turned, going for the disk, dropping it on the floor and trying to stamp on it. Someone was screaming from the adjacent room. Sans was struggling against his restraints, which he should be able to get out of when you got away the lock on his powers.

However, stamping on it did not seem to do much good. All too soon, strong arms closed around you and now you were the one screaming as well as kicking with all your power. The guard apparently hadn’t anticipated how angry you would be because he dropped you momentarily and you rushed back to the disk trying to pry it open with your bare hands but it was not working. Your cheeks felt wet and the strong arms were gripping you again, much tighter this time.

“doe, what the hell are you doing?”

Sans’ voice got through to you and you looked up to see him wearing the same defeated look from the server room.

“you should have stayed out of this. you would have been okay. why would you not let me protect you?” Sans was yelling and he sounded so angry and distraught.

Guards were rushing towards Sans too, injecting a needle into his shoulder blade, which made him fall back motionless immediately.

“Don’t hurt him!” you screamed, not caring one bit about appearances anymore. Your cover was blown. You had never been trained to go undercover. You were just a simple girl caught up in something that felt too big for you to handle. And selfishly, you didn’t want the ones you cared about getting hurt.

You cared for the monsters that you had befriended. It might be viewed as a crime but it was the truth.

“If you lay a finger on him!”

“What will you do?” Ulric asked, suddenly standing in the doorframe and looking every bit as smug. The I-told-you-so was practically tattooed onto his forehead. So he had been right about your loyalties. At least, you weren’t discriminating against an entire race, like most humans did.

“I don’t know. I don’t fucking know, Ulric. But I’ll tell you what I’m not going to do, I’m not going to be quiet and accept authority from people like you. I remember how you treated Frisk like human garbage and I know I’m likely in for the same treatment. But where they used silence to battle you, I’ll happily talk and talk. I’ll sing about how monsters are almost like us in every way. They have feelings, families, lives, hopes and dreams. And the humans that they “take” are someone who agrees to surrender and then they are educated on the monsters that they fear and let go afterwards. The monsters want a peaceful existence. It’s all they’ve ever wanted and yet we had to fuck it up by planning an attack on the meeting that was supposed to grant them citizenship. Don’t tell me you haven’t realized that the media twisted the truth?”

Whoever was holding you tried to take a step backwards when Ulric walked up to glare at you. He was a tall and intimidating man and he was looking down on you in every sense of the phrase. But you didn’t allow the man holding you to try and make you step down. You stood firm.

“Shut your lying trap.”

“It’s the truth. You wanted information, didn’t you? Monsters aren’t what we have painted them out to be and we would know that if we’d ever tried to actually peacefully talk to them, instead of declaring war at the first mishap!”

“I said shut up!” Ulric screamed, sufficiently flinging spit in your face, as he shouted.

You still didn’t back down. You were so tired of this. It had to stop somewhere. People had to start speaking up.

All the humans that left New New Home after having been through the education period had gone into hiding out of fear that they might be imprisoned if anyone knew about their changed values. But you couldn’t keep hiding. You had to speak up.

“What? You said you wanted the truth. But when it doesn’t suit you, you can’t handle it? It is so important to keep an open mind and…”

You should have seen it coming but you were busy seeing red. The slap came to your right cheek and it was an immediate splitting pain that made it feel as if your cheek had been cut open. It stung and burned and your eyes were watering instantly.

You clenched your teeth, letting the pain well up in you for only a second before you pushed it aside. Meeting anger with anger would never give any productive result. You were still so angry, perhaps angrier than you had been in your entire life, but letting it fuel you right now wouldn’t do any good. The room had gone dead quiet. Everyone was staring at you and Ulric, the other guards and Jeffords and the researchers that had stayed.

“So, when don’t know how to deal with something,” you said, your voice trembling slightly, “you just resort to violence. This is what is wrong with this situation. Violence will only end in chaos. We need to be willing to hear each other out.”

“Take her away,” Ulric commanded but no one moved. “RIGHT NOW!”

The guard holding you started moving at the exclamation, however, you felt he was holding you much gentler than before. You looked back to see Sans, unconscious and still strapped to the bed.

You had failed him. You had failed yourself. You had failed the war efforts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy New Years! Sorry for all the angst but I hope you liked this chapter. Poor Sansy! And our dear reader, she's been found out and now there's no going back. How are they going to get out of this one? As always, feedback is greatly appreciated. Thank you so much for sticking with this story. I'm rushing out the door to have dinner with friends and celebrate the last day of 2017. 
> 
> I hope you have a wonderful evening and get a great start on the new year. 
> 
> Next update will be on Sunday the 7th of December 2018.


	23. An Improbably Alliance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just when she felt utterly hopeless and like she would never be able to save Sans or herself, an unlikely ally came forward. It gave her hope that some humans weren't blinded by the hatred but instead they were ready to make their own judgements.

You had not missed the feeling of being locked up. In fact, you could have done perfectly well without every experiencing it again. You were in one of the proper holding cells and it reminded you slightly of the sparse hotel room that you had spent ten days in before you had tried to attack Sans.

That was when he’d told you about the 1 HP, which would likely now be his downfall. You hadn’t mentioned it to anyone because you knew Sans hadn’t wanted anyone to know, even if them not knowing might get him killed. He was only willing to let you tell people if it had been paramount to getting their trust, so that you could free Frisk.

Well, now Frisk was free but Sans was the one in captivity. Well, Sans and yourself. What the pair you were. You had been foolish in there but you had been grinded down over the past couple of days.

Every demeaning word about the monsters that you hadn’t been allowed to speak out against had made you feel insane and pent up. But it had been a small price to pay for everything falling into place so smoothly.

That was until that damn nearly indestructible disk that could neutralize monsters’ powers. That had been a wildcard no one had counted on.

You paced around your little holding cell, way too wired to sit still. You thought of poor Papyrus who would in all likelihood lose his brother. Sans and Frisk hadn’t even gotten to hug in all the confusion and orders coming into your earpieces from Alphys.

Sans had risked everything to save his family member and they hadn’t even gotten to hug. You started crying again, or maybe you hadn’t stopped.

Your right cheek still stung like hell and you wished so desperately that you could press charges against Ulric for the assault but you knew you couldn’t. You had undoubtedly been labeled as a monster sympathizer by now and that meant most of your rights had been stripped away.

You understood why the monsters had wanted proper rights so the human society couldn’t screw with them. However, if they had been able to see into the future they might not have chosen that particular cause to focus on.

Their king lost and their queen in a coma. Monsters left disabled or terrified. Frisk so emotionally scarred their supposed magic has stopped working.

The door to your holding cell opened and Jeffords stood in the doorframe and he looked at you like you were a pet that had failed to perform in a competition. He looked disappointed.

“How could you do that to us? You seemed like such a sensible girl. I vouched for you!” Jeffords sneered.

“You don’t know what I know, Jeffords,” you said but you were really not feeling up for the discussion. You had never been on good terms when you’d been his intern but these past days he’s been treating you like an equal and it had been nice.

“I know that you don’t side with the enemy during war.”

“It’s not as black and white as our scientific selves would like it to be,” you said. “I thought it was. Before. I thought we could learn a lot from studying these magical monsters but I never could have imagined that they were so much like us. They are, Professor Jeffords. They have culture, history, familiar ties and traditions. They are capable of rational thought as well as emotional understanding.”

“If that were true, the lot of them could not be coldblooded killers. Maybe one or two but they do everything together in packs!”

“They look after each other and they don’t kill unless they have too. It’s called self-defense and if you noticed, not a single member of staff was killed or even hurt worse than a bump on the head and some bruises. Is that the work of coldblooded killers? Disarming people is much more difficult and time consuming than using deadly force.”

Jeffords looked deep in thought before he turned on his heels without another word and slammed the door shut. You slumped back onto the bed and wondered if this could somehow be a very detailed dream and that you would wake up tomorrow and go to work and see the mountain of paperwork Jeffords usually piled up on your desk.

You didn’t really want that to be true. Despite the grave circumstances you found yourself in at the moment, you wouldn’t have given up the enlightenment or the experiences that had followed after meeting Frisk. It had been scary at times but there had also been moments of calm, happiness and companionship.

When the door opened again an hour later, you thought it might be Jeffords again but you were surprised to find it was the doctor Madelyn.

“I was only informed now by one of the guards,” she said and walked over and grabbed hold of your chin as she tilted your cheek up against the light with gentle movements. “He put a lot of force behind it.”

“It hurt like hell, so I suspect, yeah.”

“If you don’t mind me asking,” Madelyn said and you braced yourself, “what got him riled up enough to do that?”

You hadn’t been expecting that question or the gentle unsure tone of her voice. You had expected her to ask like Jeffords. How you would dare to betray your own?

“I told him the truth. Monsters aren’t evil. They’re almost exactly like us and they want peace. What the media is telling us is wrong. It’s about time someone started saying it. They would never believe it from the monsters and apparently not from a human either.”

“Well, as I heard it you tried to smash the power neutralizing disk that was the only thing that was keeping one of the most powerful monsters in check. Perhaps, their focus was on that instead,” Madelyn suggested, as she wiped something cooling over your cheek.

“Sans wouldn’t hurt them. He promised me no deadly force, not even if he was pressed into a corner. It’s my fault he got captured,” you whispered. “He could have gone through Ulric if he was allowed to kill him, powers or not. But he still respected the promise that he made me. I’m the reason he’s going to die.”

You weren’t sure how it happened but one moment you were talking and the next one Madelyn had her arms around you and you were crying into her shoulder.

“It’s all my fault,” you hulked.

“Shh,” Madelyn said comfortingly while stroking your back. “It’s not your fault. You were trying to protect people and you did. No one died.”

“Sans will die. They’ll kill him. He’ll never talk. I thought I could get him out of here but it’s not possible…” you said and pulled back as you suddenly remembered something. “Why are you being so nice? You must hate me just like all the others.”

“Oh, sweetheart, I don’t hate you. I can see how you care for the skeleton monster. I could hear it in the way you were speaking about him, even when you kept insisting that you hated monsters. I couldn’t make sense of it first but I understand it now,” Madelyn said and hesitated. “Did he truly not kill anyone?”

“He assured me that he’s only ever used deadly force to protect himself or his family. He would never do it, unless it was the only option,” you said with certainty. “That’s not the kind of man, well, monster, that he is.”

“You love him, don’t you?”

“What?” you asked. You were completely surprised by the question. Love?

“Don’t worry. I don’t judge. Some people look at my wife Hannah and I like we represent the devil. As long as it makes people happy and they are able to consent then it’s no one’s business who you like.”

“I don’t love, Sans, not like that…” you said hesitantly. “We’re…”

Friends? Partners in crime? Confidants?

“Hey, don’t worry about it, okay? Labels don’t matter unless you want or need them to.”

“I guess,” you said hesitantly. “Wait, Hannah? Not Hannah who was the interpreter for Frisk, right?”

“The one and only. Isn’t she amazing? Actually, she’s the one who told me that she suspected that you might be planning something with Frisk. Something about you doing the sign language for “opposite” before saying something?”

You had not known that she’d seen that. “What? She knew and she didn’t turn me in?”

“She suspected and she talked to me about it. But she could probably sense your intention and gave you the benefit of the doubt. In fact, she didn’t want to do this job but she already had a security clearance by being my wife, so it seemed like the perfect match. However, she has quit now that Frisk has disappeared.”

“Frisk will be fine. They are with family now. I’m happy that at least went successfully.”

“You met them once and then you went through all this for them. Why?” Madelyn asked.

“To right a wrong. They were being held against their will. They are a minor and Ulric dragged them around like a dog toy. It wasn’t okay. It took me weeks to change my mind about helping the monsters but I’m still glad I did it. Our system is flawed, our knowledge is misinformed and we have to do something about it.”

“You have a big heart, do you know that?”

“No bigger than any one else. For a long time, I was all studying and no friendships. Recently, I got reminded that life is more fun when you care about people, even if it hurts like hell if they are taken away from you. I lost my family in a car crash but I wouldn’t have been without knowing them. They shaped the first eleven years of my life and I will always be thankful for the time that I got with them. But it took me a long time to realize that.”

Madelyn got up and lingered by the door.

“If the disk got disabled or far away from Sans, would he be able to teleport out like the rumors say? Would he be able to take you with him?”

You got to your feet shakily and stared at Madelyn to catch the lie or the trick.

“Probably,” you answered cautiously.

Surely, she couldn’t mean…

“Let’s go then.”

“What?”

“Let’s go get him. All the guards are in a meeting about the current situation and there’s only one manning his door. I’ll get him away and allow you to get in there. Hannah said you memorized Jeffords’ code, that’ll probably work on Sans’ door too. I’ve got you a scalpel that should be able to pry that device open.”

“Why are you helping me? People will find out that it was you and you’ll be in trouble.”

“I thrive on trouble, just ask my wife. I’ll be fine. I’m a highly skilled doctor, I can get work anywhere, even unofficially if need be. Now let’s go.”

You weren’t going to pass up this opportunity and rushed after her. As she had said, you could see the guard outside of Sans’ room. Before she made her way over, you stopped her by grabbing her hand.

“Thank you for this.”

“Just get your skeleton out safely and keeping speaking up. This war needs to end. A doctor never gets a quiet moment during war times and I need my chill time with my wife.”

You stayed at a safe distance as Madelyn went up to the guard and spoke in a panicked rushed voice about a large man who had fainted in the cafeteria that she needed help picking up. The guard tried to deter her but she was having none of it, actually resorting to dragging him along by his arm. She was a small woman but intimidating and stern as heck.

You wondered what exactly had made her and Hannah decide to help you.

Rushing up to the door, you pushing in the key combination but it showed as rejected. They must have changed it since last night after they figured out that you knew it. You cursed inwardly and then tried the code from the research facility. The locks beeped open and you quietly thanked Jeffords yet again for being terrible with codes.

You pushed open the doors and headed straight for the power-neutralizing disk, even if you spared a quick glance to Sans, who still looked like he was out cold. At least, he was still in one piece and thereby alive.

The scalpel was just the tool you had been missing and you got past the hard shell that you hadn’t been able to break just hours earlier. There was an off switch and you flicked it before stuffing it into the pockets of your sweatpants. If you took away the technology, Alphys and Sans might be able to engineer something to counteract it or at the very least it might set the government back now that their databases had been wiped.

“Sans,” you called as you walked up to him, immediately grabbing old of his shoulder blades and shaking him frantically. He mumbled but his eye sockets stayed shut.

“Sans! I need you to get us out of here. NOW!” you said and shook him again but he just grumbled.

After a moment of hesitation, you wrapped your hand around his vertebrae, applying light pressure as you shook his shoulder again. They had given him something strong to keep him under but his body might bring him up to the surface if it sensed a threat, like a hand on his spine.

Sans’ eye socket sprang open and he struggled against the restraints that you still hadn’t pulled off. His hands tried to go for you but stopped as soon as he saw who were touching his backbone.

“am I in an alternate timeline? are you here to kill me?” Sans asked, confused.

“No, idiot,” you said affectionately, beaming because he seemed to be okay. You immediately went to dispose of the restraints keeping him in place. “You’re in the same timeline. We rescued Frisk, you got captured and now I’m here to save your ass. Well, you’ll be doing the actual saving ‘cause you need to make us a shortcut, the sooner the better.”

“but they took you, the disk is still…” Sans said and then his focus fell to the red mark on your cheek. “who did that? i’ll kill them. who laid a hand on you? i'll show them a bad time...”

“Not important, Sans, and no killing in general. I got some help to come back and get you. I turned off the disk but we need to go before everybody comes back, okay? Can you make a shortcut? I doubt we’ll be allowed to stroll out the doors.”

“err… i’m not sure. i still feel subdued,” Sans said as he sat up and almost lost his balance and toppled over. You hands went to his ribcage, as you stopped his fall.

“eager to get you hands on my bones, huh?” Sans joked. “actually where are my clothes?”

“Shortcut, Sans. We really need a shortcut.”

Sans didn’t look to hopeful but he jumped down from the bed and your hands moved to his shoulder blades to keep him upright.

“i’m not in a good way. if we go through the void, i might lose us, doe. it’s not safe.”

“It’s not safe to stay either. I believe in you, Sans, and I’m right here. I know you can do it,” you said and you meant every word. “You can do it, Sans.”

Sans looked a little less unsure but he still didn’t look confident. However, time was running out. You could hear voices approaching and the doorknob begun to move.

“hang on,” Sans said and moved to wrap his hands entirely around your body. He’d managed to wrap the sheet somewhat around him but you were still pressed against his bare ribcage and your fingers closed around his ribs.

You heard shouts but soon enough they sounded far away. Everything went black and you had a sinking feeling in your stomach, a bit like falling but then suddenly being shot upwards too. It felt like something was trying to pry you away from Sans but even though you couldn’t see him or anything in this blackness, your fingers were still securely around his ribs. You could no longer feel his hands around you though, so you clung on even tighter.

The void.

It was cold. It made you feel empty and sad. Disturbing thoughts that this was where you ended up when you died, filled your mind without permission. You thought about your family being condemned to the darkness for an eternity.

You begun to question all your choices and a little voice seemed to whisper that it was possible to go back and reset things for the better if you just let go. But did you want that? You had always made a big deal of not letting such thoughts in. You’d lost your family and they weren’t coming back. Constantly wishing you could go back and change it wasn’t a life worth living.

Gradually, Sans’ ribs seemed to lose substance and you were worried that you were losing him. You had never experienced being in the void for this long; normally it only took a moment and Sans popped out of existence and right back in. You did not like being caught in the limbo.

You thought positive thoughts. You tried to project your strength into Sans. You believed that you’d get out of here. You had to. It could not end like this. You had been through too much. You were determined to make sure the two of you didn’t perish in the void.

Suddenly, the darkness and feeling of floating up and down went away and you found solid ground under your feet and a lot of bright light compared to the darkness you had been trapped in.

Sans sagged forward into your arm and you moved to hold onto him. The first thing you saw was a small bedroom. The first thing you heard was Alphys voice over the radio.

“They have been g-gone for ten m-minutes! W-where could he have g-gone if not to me or to y-you? If the void consumes t-them…”

“Hey!” you shouted and found that your voice sounded extremely hoarse. You were still trying to hold Sans upright but he was like a ragdoll. “I could use a little help.”

“HUMAN!?” Papyrus voice shouted and he came sprinting into the room. All to quickly, he had both you and Sans in his arms and were swinging you around.

“Alphys, they’re here. Thank heavens,” Undyne yelled towards the living room from her new position in the doorframe.

You suddenly felt so very, very tired. You were somewhere safe, likely the other safe house that hadn’t been revealed. They were all here, you noted happily as you spotted Frisk beside Undyne in the living room. You could even see Mettaton lying on his back on the floor, though he seemed to be turned off.

“You’re all okay,” you whispered.

“WE’RE OKAY? IT IS YOU TWO THAT WE WERE WORRIED ABOUT! WE HAVE BEEN FOLLOWING YOU ON VIDEO. THAT PLACE HAS CAMERAS EVERYWHERE. WE SAW THE HUMAN WHO HIT YOU, UNDYNE WAS READY TO GO BACK IN AND PUNCH HIM TO A PULB,” Papyrus said while still holding you in his arms. You were pressed between two ribcages but you honestly didn’t mind at the moment. You worried that if Papyrus put you back on your feet, they’d buckle under your weight. You felt exhausted.

Of course, Sans chose that moment to come back to consciousness.

“pap? what? what human hit doe?”

“It was…”

“It doesn’t matter,” you interrupted Undyne. “We got here. You got us here, Sans.”

You only realized how close you were by both being in Papyrus’ embrace when your nose almost knocked into his cheek.

“i… no, i almost lost us. something happened. i was lost and too weak.”

“NOW IS NOT A TIME TO CONTEMPLATE YOUR INADEQUACIES, DEAR BROTHER. WE ARE JUST HAPPY THAT YOU’RE BACK. WE WORRIED THE HUMANS WOULD DUST YOU AND WE WERE PLANNING A RESCUE MISSION BUT DOE GOT THERE FIRST.”

“yeah, she did, didn’t she?” Sans said and turned to look straight at you.

You had never seen his eye sockets up this close, nor how the white pinpricks seemed to sparkle slightly when you were this close. It was hypnotizing, or maybe you were really tired.

Frisk was signing at the two of you and Sans watched with concentration etched into his exhausted-looking skull.

“no, problem, pal. of course, we came for you. you’re family. and you’re right, pap should probably put us down.”

“SORRY BUT I JUST MISSED YOU,” Papyrus said before then unceremoniously dumping the two of you on the bed.

Sans ended up rolling, so that he was almost sprawled across your body.

“sorry,” he muttered as he moved back slightly and rolled so he was on his back. You were still lying very close but you didn’t have the strength or focus to move. You worried if you’d ever be able to get up.

“I feel utterly exhausted.”

“it’s the void. it drains you. we were in there for far too long.”

“Oh, I was ready to attribute it to being undercover and constantly having to lie while getting almost no sleep,” you said and found yourself chuckling, even if it wasn’t really funny. It seemed you had gotten to the stage of tiredness where things just felt funny, whether they were it or not.

“probably didn’t help,” Sans agreed.

“You two losers look beat,” Undyne said. “Have a rest, I’ll go fill in Alphys. Frisk, Papyrus you’ll be able to talk to them later. They look about ready to pass out. Oh and here, Sans,” Undyne said and tossed a pair of shorts and his blue hoodie to Sans. “No bare bones in front of the kid.”

Sans laughed. “roger that, captain.”

You turned over on your side, away from Sans, and had a yawn and a stretch. When you turned back around, Sans had replaced the sheets with his usual black shorts and pulled his hoodie around his shoulders, even if he hadn’t closed it.

“i’m to tired to zip it up,” he explained.

“Ever the lazy skeleton,” you said fondly, as you rolled onto your side so that you were facing him. Your fingertips graced his sternum as you fiddled with getting the zip to zip upwards.

“Sorry,” you muttered.

“i don’t mind,” Sans said surprising you. I must have showed on your face because Sans chuckled at your reaction. “your touch is always so gentle. it’s nice.”

“I just thought,” you said with your hands frozen on the half-zipped up hoodie, “that you didn’t like it.”

“no, you thought it rude to ask if you could study my bones and it is, but… there’s a different between studying them and…”

“And what, Sans?” you pressed on because you wanted to know how he had wanted to finished that sentence.

Sans reached down and took your hands away from the zipper to place one on the very top of his exposed sternum and setting his hand to linger on top of yours.

“non-analytical touches. i know monsters fascinate you and i understand it. i felt like that about humans. it’s something new, exciting and it’s something different to what you already understand. it’s endless new learning opportunities.”

“Sometimes, I forget you are a scientist too,” you hummed and let your fingertips trace over the bone beneath your fingers. Sans’ chest was rising and falling slightly under your fingers, almost as if he was breathing.

“Do you have lungs?” you asked.

“no,” he said with a chuckle. “but magic isn’t a motionless operation. it moves and expand, pulsing if you will. it makes it look like i breathe.”

“Do you know how long I’ve wanted to ask you that question?”

“i’m guessing since you met me?” Sans teased but there wasn’t any prejudice or anger in his tone. It was merely light banter.

“And here I thought I was being subtle,” you shifted closer, lightly knocking into his ulna and radius. He moved away slightly and pain flashed on his face. You pulled back to inspect his arm, which upon closer inspection looked broken. You hadn’t notice before.

“Sans, did they break your arm?”

“yeah, but don’t worry. it’s healing fine,” he said and lifted slightly. It did indeed look like the bone was setting itself straight rather well. “they wanted to see if advance healing part was true. it was done just before you came in to talk to me. it’ll be as good as new tomorrow.”

“I’m so sorry,” you said and traced the part of his radius that was far away from the break.

“it’s nothing. i’ve been through far worse and you’re hurt too,” Sans remarked and suddenly his hand was coming up to gently rest against your hurt cheek. It still felt too hot but oddly, the bones in Sans’ hand seemed to have a calming effect. It was only when you spotted the light green light that you knew what he was doing. He was healing you but he should not be wasting his limited energy like that.

“Sans,” you protested and took his hand away with both of yours, gently. “You’re exhausted and it’s a slap, not a life threatening injury.”

“i’ll make him pay.”

“No, you will not. Karma will come back to get him. And frankly, I think my words did far more damage to his fragile ego that his hand did to my face. I’ll heal. I’m not sure he’ll ever be the same again.”

“that’s my girl,” Sans said and it came out so nonchalantly you almost didn’t catch the significance of his words. Sans certainly didn’t seem to realize, as he moved on. “do you want this bed? i can easily move to the one in the other room.”

“You couldn’t even stand on your own feet when we came out of the void. You’re staying. Besides, it’s not like we haven’t fallen asleep in a bed together before, is it?” you joked.

“that still feels like a dream sometimes. i couldn’t believe you’d come to wake me from a nightmare and then allow yourself to be defenseless in sleep next to the horrible monster that kidnapped you.”

“I wasn’t scared of you anymore, Sans. And I just wanted to help. No one should have to go through nightmares alone. You helped with mine as well by staying up with me.”

“caused them too.”

“Shush, you need to sleep,” you said and reached down for the edge of the blanket and pulled it up over you. “We both need rest.”

You sunk into the bed, staying on your side in the double bed but before you could go to sleep you needed to say one thing. You turned over to face Sans, who was already looking at you when you turned around.

“You know I didn’t mean any of the things I said in there, right?” you whispered.

“yeah, i know. i could sense it on your soul,” Sans said plainly and he was sporting one of his more soft grins as the moment. He reached out and tapped his finger gently against your chest where your soul hid.

“Really?” you asked in amazement. Souls were still so fascinating to you and the fact that Sans could sense human intentions was just such an incredible feat.

“yeah, and frankly you sounded really broken up,” he said and lifted his arm to indicate the break there, “about it.”

“You are the worst,” you said with not an ounce of honesty in your voice, as you burrowed your face in the soft pillow. “Still making puns in situations like this.”

“you love it,” Sans joked.

“Yeah,” you admitted. “I do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone got out! And relatively unharmed! But they did almost get stuck in the void and that will have some consequences down the road. Now focus will be on how to work Frisk's time altering powers which have been dormant since the explosion that killed Asgore and disabled some of the other monsters. And Sans and our dear reader has some things to work out too. I hope you liked the softness in the closing scene. I feel like it was a welcome break after all the angst and separation. As always, feedback is very welcome!
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday the 14th of January.


	24. A Scenic Route

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It felt like a bit of a dream to have made it out of that place, so she pushed aside all the worried thoughts in the back of her skull, as they travelled back to New New Home.

When you woke up this time, you weren’t confused as to why you were feeling warm all over. You remembered the three past torturous days and the cold and empty feeling of almost getting stuck in the void.

At the memory, your body shuddered and you moved closer to Sans. He was on his back and you were almost pressed into his side now. Your head was resting on his sternum, one of your legs swung over his and one of your hands had found its way under his hoodie so that it was resting on his spine.

This time you couldn’t really pretend that you weren’t cuddling the skeleton. It seemed like your body had drifted towards him instinctively. You reasoned it must be because of the warmth he always seemed to elude thanks to his magic. You didn’t particularly want to get up and move away from the safe little space of right now.

“i know that you’re awake,” Sans said in a low voice and you tilted your head up to look at his face. He looked genuinely amused and you noticed how the arm he had wrapped around you tightened a little before his thumb started stroking your shoulder lightly.

You felt a bit caught out and without thinking you tensed and that caused your hand in his ribcage to tighten, which in turn made him to completely still and tense.

“doe, you’re all up in my spine,” he said, his voice coming out slowly and you released your impulsive grip.

“Sorry,” you said but didn’t make a move to pull your hand out of his ribcage. You merely let your fingers rest on his spine. You could feel the texture of his spine under your fingers but it wasn’t anything like bones of animals or humans. Sans’ bones seemed softer to the touch.

“i should never let a human get that close to my soul,” he muttered and you realized that his soul was probably located somewhere inside of his ribcage.

“And I shouldn’t have asked a monster to pull out my soul,” you retaliated. “But I did. I wouldn’t hurt your soul either, Sans.”

“i know,” Sans said without any hesitation and you felt his thumb stroking back and forth over your shoulder again.

You let your head rest back against his sternum and took a breath in. The familiar scent of the hoodie he always wore met you.

“SANS! DOE!” Papyrus announced as the locked door sprang open.

He was way too loud for this early in the morning and your first instinct was to reach down and pull up the duvet to cover you completely. Oddly, it brought back memories of hiding under the covers when one of your parents had come to wake you up for school.

“YOU NEED TO GET UP. IT IS 8 AM ALREADY AND YOU HAVE SLEPT FOR TWELVE HOURS. THAT SHOULD BE MORE THAN ENOUGH TIME FOR YOU TO RECHARGE. SANS, YOU NEED TO TELEPORT US ALL HOME. WE SENT THE ROYAL GUARDS, DOGAMY, DOGARESSA AND THE FROGITS HOME AFTER THE RAID TO PROTECT NEW NEW HOME BUT WE NEED TO GET BACK NOW. TORIEL MUST BE GOING INSANE WITHOUT SEEING FRISK,” Papyrus spoke as you closed your eyes and pressed your face deeper into Sans’ hoodie.

“Papyrus is right. You two lovebirds need to get off your asses!” Undyne shouted, probably from the living room.

“hi frisk,” Sans suddenly said and the weight in the bed dipped until you suddenly felt a weight on the other side of Sans. “i missed you too, pal.”

Frisk moved up the side of the duvet and went to hug Sans, but upon seeing how close you were cuddled up to him, Frisk merely moved his arms to include you in the hug too. That finally got you to sit up and untangle yourself from Sans. You were gaining an audience all too quickly and what had Undyne called you?

“MORNING, DOE! DO NOT LET MY BROTHER’S LAZINESS INFECT YOU,” Papyrus warned seriously. “ARE YOU READY TO GO HOME?”

Home. Where was home for you now? You couldn’t go back to your apartment after revealing yourself to be a monster sympathizer and you couldn’t go back to your studies at university. You had effectively given up on all of that when you’d turned against your own in the rescue of Frisk, Mettaton and Sans.

Humans would never allow you to live beside them legally again. You would have to do it covertly if you wanted to be part of human society again. You didn’t want to know if your photo was already added to that website warning people of human sympathizers.

Sans seemed to sense that what Papyrus’ words had made you think of and he sat up, and reached out to rest his hand on the small of your back.

“you’re coming home with us, doe,” Sans said and despite the finite sound of his statement, you knew he didn’t mean it in a forceful way.

“OF COURSE, SHE IS. SHE IS OUR FRIEND AND WE WOULD NEVER LEAVE OUR FRIENDS BEHIND,” Papyrus declared and you really wanted it to be as simple as that.

Frisk waved to get your attention and when you were looking, they did the sign for family and pointed at you. A smile crept up on your face but you weren’t sure that they were right. You hadn’t had a family for a long time and while the monsters were definitely your friends, you still couldn’t hold that claim to family.

“give us a couple of minutes to get ready, okay?” Sans asked of Papyrus and Frisk.

“FINE,” Papyrus said and quickly excited the room before coming back with some clothes for you. “HERE YOU GO, DOE.”

You thanked Papyrus and smiled at Frisk as the door closed again. You moved until your feet where on the ground but your butt still on the bed and you leaned forward into your hands.

“I can’t believe this is my life,” you muttered. “I… Sans, everything that happened in there… It was the right thing to do. I know it was. I don’t doubt it for a second but I’m just so scared now. I’ve been outcast…”

“you will always be welcome in new new home, doe,” Sans assured you.

You nodded but you felt a bit numb as you turned around to pull the shirt over your head. You’d been so distracted that your mind hadn’t really caught up with the fact that you were essentially stripping, even if you still had a bra and sweatpants on.

“humans are fascinating,” Sans noted as his gaze swept over your bare skin before he turned his eyes away. “sorry.”

“Hey, the way I’ve been staring at your bones on every opportunity, I can’t really fault you, Sans,” you said as you rushed to put a new shirt over your head.

You thankfully found a toothbrush laid out for you in the en suite and it felt good to brush your teeth and splash some water on your face. When you and Sans emerged from the bedroom, Undyne and Frisk was sat at the dining table while Mettaton was still on his back on the floor and Papyrus was running around packing things up.

“So did the two of you finally bump uglies?” Undyne asked with a mischievous grin.

Your mouth may have fallen open. But then again, when you remembered the way the two of you had clung to each other this morning, it wasn’t too much of a leap.

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN?” Papyrus asked innocently.

“Nothing,” you rushed to say and sent a glare Undyne’s way. “I mean, just that we might have bumped into each other while we were sleeping next to each other.”

Sans looked vaguely amused at your explanation and he didn’t look like he was jumping in to contribute at all.

“BUT THAT DOESN’T MAKE SENSE. WHAT WOULD BE UGLY ABOUT THAT?”

“Let’s change the topic, Pap,” you urged and chanced a glance at Frisk who seemed more cued in than poor Papyrus.

“Fine, we’ll let your bedroom adventures wait another day,” Undyne said. “Sansy, are you ready to get us back? One by one again?”

“err… actually, i don’t think i can right now,” Sans said. “the void sort of took it out of me. i’m all out of shortcuts at the moment. we have to rent a car instead.”

There was something in Sans’ tone that made you feel like he was evading something and not telling you the whole truth but you weren’t about to call him out about it in front of his brother and closest friends.

“WHEN SANS FAILS, IT’S PAPYRUS TO THE RESCUE. I WILL CALL OUR HUMAN CONTACTS. ONE OF THEM WILL BOOK US A CAR!” Papyrus announced and pulled out his phone and stated dialing.

“It will take over five hours to drive back,” Undyne grumbled. “I’m calling Alphys and letting her know of the change of plans.”

Both of the monsters walked off to separate corners of the apartment, which left you, Sans, Frisk and the unconscious Mettaton who was still lying on the floor where he had been yesterday.

Frisk started signing rapidly and Sans watched closely.

“don’t worry about that right now, frisk. we’ll figure out your reset abilities later. right now, we’re getting you home. i know a certain goat monster that misses you terribly.”

Frisk signed again and you watched in amazement the way the two of them interacted. It was odd only properly understanding one of the sides of the conversation but it was incredible to see how well Sans understood sign language. You poured yourself come cereal while they conversed.

Papyrus and Undyne eventually came back and you gathered up your things.

“What is the deal with Mettaton?” you finally managed to ask, as Undyne lifted the robot monster up on her as if he didn’t weigh a thing.

“He’s not himself. Whatever technology is inside of him now is conflicting with the things Alphys installed. It’s safer to keep him unconscious until Alphys can figure out what’s wrong with him. But I promise her to look after the rust bucket.”

The car had been parked just outside of the apartment but it was still a project getting four monsters into it without any of the humans noticing. Eventually you managed, even if you and Frisk had to act as a distraction as they snuck inside.

Papyrus took the wheel, Undyne took the passenger seat, Mettaton was stuffed in the back and you found yourself sitting between Sans and Frisk on the backseat. As soon as you started driving, it felt more like a field trip than a return from a rescue mission. Undyne was being the DJ, changing between radio stations and explicitly avoiding everything that mentioned anything about the news. You asked Frisk to teach you some more sign language, which they did happily. Frisk seemed so surprised that you wanted to learn and you tried your very best, even though it was quite difficult. Sans was ready to offer support or clues whenever you felt a little lost.

The atmosphere within the car was light and bubbly and filled with laughter. Papyrus was an excellent driver and he was extremely careful not to exceed the speed limit, despite Undyne’s protests that it would take forever to get home this way. You backed up Papyrus, the last thing you wanted was to get pulled over for speeding. You’d been in a whole lot of trouble if a police officer found a car with four monsters and two monster sympathizers.

The hours passed rather quickly and you ate lunch in the car that Papyrus had somehow managed to pack in a jiffy. It was the first time in a long time that you didn’t have to resort to sleeping in a car to stop your mind from going to the accident that claimed the lives of your family. It was a nice change that the chatter and sign language lessons kept you busy.

When you neared New New Home, you suddenly wondered how you were going to get in. While humans couldn’t get near the entrance of town because of the magic and monster patrols, they had the outer boundaries pretty well guarded. They had never seen a car come out of the gates.

You would have suspected that it might be because Sans often acted as a mode of transportation but you knew you had somehow made it into New New Home for the first time when you were also in a car.

“How are we getting in?”

“A SECRET PASSAGE WAY, IN THE SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN,” Papyrus declared proudly.

“Wait? Into the Underground?” you asked and almost jumped out of your seat and bumped your head on the roof of the car. “We’re going through the Underground?”

“Just a little part of it, near the core,” Undyne explained. “When the war first started and we made the wall, we made sure we had both a front and a back exit. The humans don’t know the back entrance through the Underground exists.”

As Mount Ebott came into view and you drove closer and closer, you felt smaller and smaller. You wondered what had made Frisk climb up the mountain when they were just a kid. What could have possessed the child to climb somewhere so dangerous that was notorious for climbers disappearing?

You recalled how you’d wondered if you’d be able to scale the mountain to escape the clutches of your kidnappers. You were glad it hadn’t come to that because you might have gotten yourself killed by falling to your death, even if you had landed in the Underground. It was somewhat of a miracle that Frisk had even survived a fall like that.

As you drove closer and closer to the mountainside, it didn’t look like there was an entrance at all. It was only when you were extremely close that you saw the tiny gap, only just big enough to fit a car through.

You might have held your breath in anticipation and leaned over Sans to get as close to the window as possible. You could feel Sans’ ribcage vibrate with a light chuckle from here you had your arm pressed against him. He moved his arm to roll down the window for you and he didn’t protest as you were hanging over him.

Only a few select humans had been allowed down here before the war. But now it was filled with people. More humans than monsters.

“How can there be so many humans down here?” you asked in wonder.

“As part of the monster education humans go through after they surrendered, they spend some time living in the Underground,” Undyne explained. “It’s pretty rad. I have a training course with them each week.”

“YOU JUST LOVE TO SCARE THE HUMANS WITH YOUR STRENGTH,” Papyrus said. “AND I HELP OUT TOO. THEY LOVE ME. CLEARLY, THEY HAVE EXCELLENT TASTE!”

You smiled widely and pulled your attention back within the car for a moment to glance behind you where you found Frisk hanging out of their own window, much like you were doing over Sans’. You could only see the back of their head and you wondered what thoughts were passing through their head as they watched the place that had changed their life forever.

All too soon, you made it through the area of the Underground and drove through the place where the barrier had been before. The car drove across it perfectly and you pulled yourself back to sit properly in your seat, as you watched the three awake monsters’ reaction.

There was still relief in their expressions. It must have been horrible to be trapped underground for so very long and never get to leave.

“That was way too fast,” you muttered under your breath.

“WHAT IS THAT, DOE? WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE MORE OF THE UNDERGROUND? I CAN TURN THE CAR AROUND IF YOU WANT,” Papyrus offered, always the sweetheart.

“No!” you rushed to say. “I would like to see more of your old home but we need to get back. Frisk has someone very important to see and I’m sure Alphys is eager to tackle the human software put into Mettaton.”

“i’ll show you some time, if you’d like,” Sans offered, his voice quiet and unsure.

You smiled brightly at him. “I’d love that.”

Sunlight washed over you as the car made it back out into the area that was now known as New New Home. You had not gotten even gotten to the center of the town before you spotted a goat monster in a wheelchair with a dog monster in amour beside it. Frisk instantly started moving, unclicking their seatbelt and the car door before Papyrus had even pulled the vehicle to a halt.

“FRISK! THAT IS BAD MANNERS! I WAS STOPPING!” Papyrus argued but it didn’t look like Frisk was listening one bit. They were running at full speed, flinging themselves into the lap of the goat monster in the wheelchair that you reasoned had to be Toriel, the former queen of monsters.

As Papyrus pulled over to the side and actually stopped the car, Sans opened the door in his side and stepped out before holding a hand out to help you. You really didn’t need any help getting out of the car but you took his hand anyway.

“toriel and lesser dog,” Sans explained as you approached the two monsters and Frisk.

Lesser Dog came up to you as you neared, sniffing you with interest while panting. More out of habit than anything else, you reached forward and petted the dog monster’s ear. Instantly, it was like the face extended towards you, Lesser Dog’s neck elongating. You let out a startled laugh and gave the dog monster another pet of the cream colored fur, which felt soft under your fingers.

“Nice to meet you,” you told Lesser Dog who barked excitedly.

“You must be the human Papyrus told me about,” an unfamiliar voice said and you turned your attention to the goat monster, who was now standing on her feet in front of the wheelchair. She was clutching on tightly to a cane and Frisk was hanging off her side, like a very young child scared to say goodbye to their parents on the first day of school.

You straightened yourself a little. Toriel was tall and she had an air of something that inspired respect. Perhaps, it was the way she spoke softly but still had a gaze of power in her eye, even as she struggled to stay upright. It wasn’t power from magic coming off her, like you could so often felt with Sans. No, her authority wasn’t inspired by anything other than how she held herself.

You tried to say something, anything but your throat didn’t obey in the slightest and you just choked out some weird squeak.

“yeah, this is doe, toriel,” Sans introduced you.

Toriel extended a cloven hoof in your direction and carefully you took it and bowed your head slightly.

“Nice to meet you, Toriel,” you said as you had finally found your voice. “I have heard a lot about you from Frisk.”

Toriel looked down at Frisk who nodded and smiled and hugged her a little tighter. You weren’t sure the teenager was ever doing to let go.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Doe. I understand from Alphys that you played a significant part in rescuing Frisk. We are forever indebted to you,” Toriel said ceremoniously.

“It wasn’t anything… and trust me, you don’t owe me anything. I’m just happy I could help,” you said. You’d feel terrible to have the boss monster in debt to you. You had helped, yes, but you had also concealed vital information for a very long time before finally deciding to open your mouth. You guessed that Alphys hadn’t let that detail pass to Toriel or you wouldn’t be getting such a warm welcome. It was surprising in itself that the dinosaur monster had spoken about your help at all. You still thought that Alphys hated you.

“TORIEL! YOU LOOK VERY WELL. IT’S SO NICE TO SEE YOU ON YOUR FEET AGAIN,” Papyrus greeted as he walked up to the five of you with Undyne.

“Thank you, Papyrus. I am slowly improving. Unfortunately, I cannot say standing for a long time,” Toriel confessed and sat back down in the wheelchair, Frisk and Lesser Dog readily jumping in to help her.

Your heart broke a little. The bomb had done that to her, just like it had taken the rest of Undyne’s vision and Papyrus’ hand.

“maybe we should wait with the big reunion. let frisk take you home. we’ll speak later when you haven’t had a long day of waiting,” Sans suggested and there was that soft tone he so often used when he spoke about Toriel.

You looked at how he held himself a little straighter, very opposite to his usually slouched posture and he had stuffed his hands into the pockets of his hoodie, which was usually something he did when he was on edge. Again, you found yourself wondering what had passed between the two of them.

“I suspect that you are right, Sans. But we will have a proper celebration of Frisk’s return,” Toriel said and reached out to cup Frisk’s cheek with her cloven hoof. “I am so happy that you have returned, my child.”

Frisk started signing and Toriel frowned in confusion as she was clearly trying to decode it.

“frisk says that they are very happy to be home and that they missed you every moment you were apart,” Sans translated.

“Thank you, Sans. I’m afraid my sign language is still rusty after I woke up,” Toriel said and shot Sans a fond glare.

“Papyrus, let’s get back in the car,” Undyne said. “I need to get Mettaton to Alphys.”

“YOU JUST WANT TO GO SEE HER TO SMOOCH HER!” Papyrus teased and Undyne’s blue skin reddened slightly as she looked flustered.

“So what? Let’s go, punk, or I’m extending our next training exercise with an hour more of kicking your butt.”

“NYH HEH,” Papyrus laughed, nervously and moved very quickly back towards the car.

“SANS AND DOE, DO YOU NEED A LIFT?” Papyrus asked as he got back into the car.

You exchanged glances and Sans just shrugged, leaving the choice up to you.

“We’ll walk,” you decided.

Frisk had climbed into Toriel’s lap, even if they could hardly fit on the chair, neither of them seemed to mind. Lesser Dog walked around and started pushing the wheelchair.

Before they moved anywhere though, Frisk did a few signs to Sans.

“we’ll figure it out later, frisk. enjoy the day. everything else can wait for tomorrow,” Sans replied and Frisk smiled thankfully and did the sign for thank you, which you were able to recognize.

“We’ll speak again soon, Sans,” Toriel said as Lesser Dog started wheeling the two of them forward. “And it was very nice to meet you, Doe. Thank you both for returning Frisk to me.”

You nodded once more and lingered as the two monsters and Frisk headed down the street.

“So that’s the queen of monsters? She’s… a lot less intimidating than I thought she would be. And not because of the chair, mind you, she still has an air of authority but she’s just so soft spoken and nice?”

"if toriel had a human soul color it would probably be kindness, even if it has been misplaced at times. she always means well,” Sans said and started walking towards the home he shared with Papyrus.

It suddenly dawned on you that you weren’t sure if you were welcome there anymore. There was no immediate mission, at least not one that you were part of. You still weren’t sure what the plan was with Frisk’s time manipulation abilities or if you’d even be allowed to be part of that decision.

Sans didn’t seem too worried about it, as the two of you strolled through the streets of New New Home that you had come to feel familiar with. You saw monsters and humans walking side by side, living in harmony. This was what the future should look like, not war and hatred toward those who were different from yourself.

A yellow monster in a striped shirt came running towards you the moment they spotted you.

“Are they back? Did you bring Frisk home?” the monster asked as they skidded to a halt right in front of your almost tripping over. You recalled their name now, Monster Kid.

“yeah, frisk is at toriel’s now,” Sans said.

You saw how the monster’s face fell a little at this information, which was a stark contrast to the previous excitement.

“i’m sure frisk would love to see you,” Sans said, uncharacteristically caring and soft to someone he hadn’t counted amongst his friends and family.

“You think so? You think they’d be happy too see me? I should have helped save them but my parents wouldn’t let me do anything and I…”

“i’m sure,” Sans said, definitively, which worked to both cut off the start of an undoubtedly long rambling and assuring the young monster.

“Thank you, Sans. Oh, and nice to meet you, human. You’re Doe, right? I’ve heard so much about you. Thank you for helping save Frisk. People used to call me Monster Kid as a nickname but I’m not really a kid anymore. You can call me Mont.”

“Nice to meet you properly, Mont,” you said and did a slight bow now that you couldn’t shake their hand.

“I’ll go see Frisk,” Mont announced before jetting off as fast as their legs could carry them.

You smiled at their antics as you resumed your walk to the skeleton brothers’ home. You might have been walking a little slower than normally while trying to take in everything New New Home had to offer.

Perhaps, you’d go to live in those human apartment complexes where humans could stay after their education period if they so wished. It was probably more appropriate than continuing to sleep on Sans and Papyrus’ sofa.

As Sans pulled open the door to the home you’d grown familiar with, you hesitated in the doorframe.

“Sans, should I still stay here? I don’t want to be a burden and now that we’re done with the missions…”

“doe,” Sans addressed you in a fond voice, which told you that he thought you were being a bit ridiculous. He had already sat down on the sofa, which had been your bed for a long time. “of course, you can stay. our home will always be open to you. mission in sight or not. besides, pap would have my head if i made his cooking buddy move out.”

The last sentence that Sans added on took away from the heavy sentiment of his first few sentences. It was so like Sans to cover up something with a joke at the end, to take away from the gravity of everything.

Thankfully, you’d learnt that didn’t mean that he took his serious words any less serious. He just felt vulnerable when he confessed stuff like that.

“Then I’ll stay,” you said and walked inside.

You weren’t sure how long you’d stay but at least you could stay for now. If Frisk managed to turn back time to over four years ago, all of what had happened to you over the last month and a bit would be erased and none of it would have mattered anyway.

You swallowed down your feelings about that and smiled at Sans. You couldn’t worry about that right now. You had been through hell over the last few days and you deserved an uncomplicated day to rest.

Just as you were closing the door, Papyrus came running with two bags of groceries in his arms.

“IT HAS BEEN TOO LONG SINCE WE’VE BAKED, DOE. DO YOU WANT TO MAKE BROWNIES, VANILLA CUPCAKES OR PECAN PIE?” Papyrus asked, full of his usual joy and excitement.

Sans had already slouched down the sofa, his head lulled back and his eye sockets closed slightly as he was snoozing. Sans was napping, Papyrus wanted to bake, Frisk was safely home, Undyne and Alphys was reunited and you pushed aside future worries for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A more fluffy chapter after all that angst! I'm happy to have some fluff again. And we finally met Toriel! Over 90k words before I got around to introducing her. Also, little Monster Kid who is a teenager like Frisk now. Everyone is happy and home for now, even if our dear reader isn't quite sure where she fits now. I hope you liked this chapter and as always feedback is very welcome. 
> 
> Also happy early birthday to ForevaBiscuit! I hope you have a wonderful day tomorrow. 
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday the 21st of January.


	25. An Old Fear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They were back in New New Home working to fix several issues but she was starting to worry what was up with Sans. He hadn't been the same since they came back from the POCAM facility but she wasn't sure if how she should approach him about it.

It took you exactly four days to figure out why Sans seemed off.

In the beginning, it had been hard to notice. There had been so much that needed to get done once you returned to New New Home. The three most important things were a) to fix Mettaton so he might not go killer robot on you all, b) to figure out how to counteract the magic neutralizing disk you’d stolen from the POCAM base and c) last but certainly not least, get Frisk their time manipulating powers back.

Surprisingly, you had been invited to be at the very inner circle of it all. Alphys and Sans were running point on the three objectives quite naturally but you’d been allowed to be in the laboratory as well and help out wherever you could. It was the most fascinating work you’d done so far.

Frisk was there as a test subject, often accompanied by Toriel. Undyne and Papyrus were around a lot but other than offering to punch something to make it work or to plan out puzzles, they weren’t much of much help. It was nice to have everyone around though.

Alphys had softened after you’d helped bring Mettaton and Frisk back. Her distaste for humans might also have been brought down for the fact Frisk practically leapt into her arms when they first saw her and signed how much they had missed her. She’d flushed scarlet and stammered more than usual. Undyne might have called the reaction adorable before covering it up with a cough.

So amongst everything, it was difficult to figure out exactly what seemed off about Sans, even if you had a pit in the bottom of your stomach that something wasn’t right with him. He still cracked jokes and he was being extremely helpful and clever in trying to solve the three objectives but something was still off about him.

On the fourth day, you finally had a breakthrough after having worked pretty much nonstop. Alphys had made it through to Mettaton and effectively removed the software that the humans had installed in him. Furthermore, Sans and you were very close to figuring out how to modify the power neutralizing disk, so that it would counteract the suppression of magical powers. The only project you hadn’t been making headway on was Frisk’s magic ability and Frisk was getting increasingly frustrated with themselves.

Nevertheless, Toriel announced that you would all have a celebratory dinner that you had gotten Mettaton back. Undyne and Papyrus volunteered to help Toriel with the cooking, as did you after Papyrus started ranting about how great a teacher you’d been. Being in the kitchen with three enthusiastic monsters felt rather odd but it was a fun experience, even though Undyne and Papyrus tried to make everything into a competition or a race. They also cooked rather… aggressively but it was fun to watch, even if it left a lot of cleanup.

In the end, it was a rather full table; Frisk, Toriel, Papyrus, Sans, Undyne, Alphys, Mettaton, Napstablook, Mont and yourself. The two last monsters had been invited as guests of Mettaton and Frisk respectively. It was during a quieter part of dinner that it suddenly dawned on you what was odd about Sans’ behavior over the last few days. Papyrus had mentioned something about Sans’ laziness, as he often did, and you finally figured it out.

You hadn’t seen Sans use a shortcut. Not once since you’d returned from the rescue mission. He’d said he’d been too weak to take you all back immediately after, which was understandable, but it had been days ago and he’d used his other powers freely for days now.

You found yourself glancing across the table to where Sans was sitting. Toriel was at one end of the table with Frisk on her left and Sans on her right. You were sat between Napstablook and Mont, which had seemed a bit odd but you hadn’t questioned Toriel’s place setting. Undyne was across from you and size of the group was small enough that you could talk to everyone without problem.

Sans caught your eye and something in his expression changed. He looked startled and a little guilty for some reason and you tried to hold onto the eye contact but he looked away. Instead, you felt Toriel’s gaze upon you, which made you snap your eyes down as if you’d been a kid glancing across the classroom to catch a glimpse of your crush and the teacher had caught you. It wasn’t the comparison that your head perhaps should have made but there wasn’t much you could do about that.

The chatter around the table was infectious and bubbly. Mettaton, now back to his usual self, was in one word fabulous. He was charming and complimentary and pretty much just like he had been in the television broadcast you had seen him do years ago. Papyrus and Undyne were loud as always, sharing opinion and old stories. Alphys and Napstablook were quieter and Sans would have been too, if not for the fact he kept acting as a voice for Frisk’s sign language so that everyone could understand them. Monster Kid, or Mont, babbled just as much as Frisk did and you caught a few exchanged glances between the two of them. It looked oddly like young infatuation and your heart swelled a bit at the thought, even if you couldn’t be certain.

After the three-course meal, you offered to help wash up. It had been something you’d gotten so used to at the skeleton brothers’ home that you didn’t even think about it. You mind was preoccupied with how to approach the subject of shortcuts with Sans, who hadn’t yet brought it up of his own volition. Maybe it wasn’t your place to call him out on it.

Papyrus had helped with the worst of the dishes before you had dismissed him to finish up the rest without his help. As you were cleaning off the plates, you found yourself alone with Toriel in the kitchen. You could hear the chatter from the remaining eight guests as they had moved into the living room.

You hadn’t actually been alone with the boss monster before. She was clutching her cane but still standing tall despite her obvious discomfort.

“I can finish up in here, Toriel,” you told her because you didn’t want to keep her on her feet any longer than necessary.

“Nonsense, I will help,” said the goat monster lady and you didn’t want to argue with that tone, so you just offered her a small smile.

“What is going on with Sans?” she asked, somewhat out of the blue and you almost dropped the plate you were putting in the dishwasher.

“Sans?” you asked, baffled.

“Yes, you know, skeleton monster, about this tall, makes hilarious puns?” Toriel teased and there was softness to her in that moment.

“He’s…” you hesitated because Sans hadn’t talked to you about the shortcut thing yet and he might not want anyone to know. “Fine, I guess. I wouldn’t know otherwise.”

Toriel hummed and wiped off one of the last plates. “I think you would, my dear. When I have been with Frisk at the lab, it was clear how well you know each other. You work like a perfect team already.”

“Just dumb luck, I’m sure,” you said.

“Perhaps,” Toriel said and the soft smile was back on her face. “But do talk to him. It seems like something is bothering him.”

So you weren’t the only one who’d noticed that his almost perfect façade wasn’t real. You thought back to the late nights working in the laboratory these last few days. You’d still stayed up and talked but it had been focused on the problems at hand, no personal stuff like before.

Several hours later, the hangout after the dinner seemed to disperse. Napstablook and Mettaton were roommates, as well as cousins, which was something you just learnt, so they headed home together. Alphys and Undyne walked out hand in claw and Mont was apparently having a sleepover with Frisk. You headed home with the two skeleton brothers after having thanked Toriel for her hospitality.

“Of course,” she said when you told her. “You are part of the team now, Doe. You will always be welcome in my home after having helped bring Frisk back to me.”

The walk back to the house consisted of Papyrus babbling and being in a giggly mood. He’d eaten way too much candy after dinner and he was on a sugar high that he was bound to crash on eventually. But he was quite adorable like this, even more adorable than usually.

“I JUST LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH. ALL OF MY FRIENDS ARE AMAZING. METTATON IS SO FUNNY. UNDYNE IS SO COOL. ALPHYS IS SO SMART. TORIEL IS SO KIND. FRISK IS SO DETERMINED. MONSTER KID IS SO PRECIOUS. NAPSTABLOOK IS SO INTERESTING. SANS IS THE VERY BEST BROTHER ANYONE COULD ASK FOR AND DOE IS SO GREAT AND KIND,” Papyrus shouted from the top of his non-existent lungs as the three of you walked side by side.

It caused a few monsters and humans to look your way but they just smiled at Papyrus’ antics.

Predictably, it took less than five minutes for Papyrus to fall asleep on the sofa where he had insisted on staying not to miss out of the fun of “your and Sans’ night time adventures”, as he called it. You’d told him you were just chatting and having tea but he had been adamant about joining anyway.

Sans just rolled his pupils as the two of you came back from the kitchen with three mugs of tea to find Papyrus snoozing on the sofa. Then the familiar light blue glow enveloped Papyrus body and Sans sent him floating off to his bedroom.

“So you still use your gravity powers. That’s good,” you commented and Sans entire body went stiff.

“i don’t know what you’re talking about,” Sans replied but he stayed standing in the middle of the living room, tea in one hand and the other out stretched from where he’d just guided Papyrus into bed. His posture completely contradicted his words.

“Sans, come sit down with me, would you?” you asked in a soft voice as you sat down on the sofa and pulled your legs up under you to get comfortable. “Please?”

Sans’ sighed but some of the tension at least drained out of his bones.

“of course, you noticed,” he said, his voice defeatist.

“Well, maybe if you didn’t use to use shortcuts whenever possible, it wouldn’t have been so easy. It still took me a couple of days though. And I actually wasn’t sure if I wanted to bring it up with you. I don’t mean to offend you.”

“i don’t think you’re capable of offending me, doe. i just… i hoped you wouldn’t notice. it’s not exactly something i’m proud of.”

“Sans, you know you can talk to me. I won’t judge you. I don’t even care if you don’t want to use shortcuts anymore. That’s all your business but I have a feeling that it’s about more than just the shortcuts in itself.”

“yeah,” Sans said and took a sip of his tea as his focus fell on the cup you had intended for Papyrus. You’d set it aside on the coffee table. It was red and flashy and seemed to suit the taller skeleton, even if he now wouldn’t be drinking out of it.

You were watching Sans as he tipped his head back and the tea disappeared into his mouth. You’d asked him about where food and drinks went since he didn’t have a stomach. He said his magic just absorbed the food the moment it was past his teeth.

“You don’t have to tell me, Sans. I just wanted to let you know that you could if you needed to. I just… got a little worried, I guess.”

“doe, you shouldn’t worry about an bag of bones like me. even if i manage to tickle your funny bone occasionally.”

You wanted to tell him to drop the joking grin while you were trying to discuss something important but you knew it was a way he was defending himself. It kept people laughing but it also kept them at a distance.

You decided to keep your tongue and just let the silence fall over the two of you. You’d always been able to have comfortable silences with Sans, even before he told you that you were free to go. Eventually, one of you would speak but the quiet was nice normally. At present moment, it was a little less nice because you knew Sans was holding something back.

And you wanted to help him desperately, even if helping just consisted of sitting here and listening. Something had changed since you came back from the POCAM base and it wasn’t just the way that you interacted, which you knew for a fact had changed.

“it’s the void,” Sans said eventually, when you were almost done with your tea.

You kept quiet, indirectly urging him to continue by turning your focus on him.

“my shortcuts go through the void, which is a horrible place. i’ve learnt to handle it but after last time… i was being ripped apart. the void almost turned me to dust and if i had ceased to exist in the void, then so would you,” Sans said and looked up from where he’d been staring into his mug.

When he got angry, his white pinpricks disappeared. When he used magic, the left eye socket filled with blue fire. When he was vulnerable, his pupils seemed to expand and shimmer, which they were doing right now.

“Sans, we made it out. You got us through. I didn’t doubt you’d be able to do it for one second. You have to know that. I trusted you completely and…”

“and that’s the problem!” Sans interrupted. “i almost killed you. killed us both. we should have been dead. i know you felt the call of the void too. it’s a bad place…”

“Sans, it’s okay to be scared,” you said and leaned towards him to place your hand on his radius and ulna, the same bones that had been broken just days earlier. The faintest scar could be seen where the bone had mended itself back together.

“it’s not okay and i’m not scared,” Sans argued.

He was the big brother. He had been in charge of protecting and looking after Papyrus practically their whole lives. You weren’t sure why there hadn’t been a parental figure in the picture but you knew from Papyrus’ stories that it had always just been the two of them. And therefore, it made sense that Sans didn’t let himself be afraid of anything.

He put on the menacing grin and empty eyes and made sure he was the thing people feared. After all, if you are frightening it’s easier to pretend that you are the only scary thing around. Or he went the other way and hid behind jokes and a goofy grin while pretending that he didn’t have a single care in the world.

“The void is horrible. I felt the coldness and emptiness of that place, Sans. I know it’s not a good place but usually you can go through it and be out in less than a second. The only reason we almost got stuck was because you were drugged and injured. You’re recovered now.”

“you don’t know what i had to do to get that good,” Sans muttered, his hands very tight on his pun mug. You could sense that the mug was about to splinter under the force and you put your hands over Sans and he loosened his grip and looked up to meet your eyes.

You pulled the mug from his hands and interlinked your two hands with his skeleton ones.

“Tell me then,” you asked, gently but still with a firm edge in your voice.

Sans’ white pinpricks sparkled slightly and he looked like he wanted to get out of there. You had figured out why he liked his shortcuts so much. It was an easy out of any situation that he didn’t agree with. He could just disappear into thin air and not deal with the conflict but right now he wasn’t willing to go through the void to escape this conversation.

“it’s not a pretty story, doe,” Sans warned you.

“I can handle it,” you assured him and gave his hands a light squeeze. He was putting no force in the hold at all, almost as if he was scared he’d hurt you if he allowed himself the smallest comfort in your touch.

“me and pap aren’t like most monsters. most monsters are born out of their parents merging souls which creates a soul shard which grow into a monster. but… me and pap weren’t born from soul shards. we were just clusters of bones in the void. someone found us and brought us into the underground and surrounded by all that magic we became real monsters. our bones knitted themselves together around this monster magic, eventually forming proper souls for us.”

You had never heard about something like that before and you fought not to let the shock show on your face. Monsters that came from the void that most humans still didn’t know about? It made sense then that Sans could travel through it if it has been his birth place.

“Who found you?”

“a monster named w.d. gaster. he was the royal scientist before alphys. obsessed with getting through the barrier. that’s how he found the void between spaces, even if being there almost dusted him. he found my bones first and brought me back. i don’t think he ever thought i would turn into a proper monster but i did. when i was still babybones, he started training me to go back into the void. he thought i could figure out a way to get around the barrier…”

You gave his hands a little squeeze, showing him that you were still here and he tentatively squeezed yours back.

“i was terrified of the void. my monster soul felt all too vulnerable in there and i couldn’t yet control my shortcuts. gaster kept pushing me but i started to refuse. then he suddenly brought home another cluster of bones, just like i had been and then papyrus was born. after that i did everything gaster asked to make sure the burden would never fall on my baby brother. pap was too pure to mess with the void, he still is. so i kept going into the void, trying to find a way to get across the barrier. it messed my hp up completely but i got pretty good at it with all that forced practice.”

You felt tears collect in your eyes. You could see it for you. Young Sans being made to go back to a place that terrified him and rejected him now that he was not part of it anymore. You hadn’t heard about Gaster before but you already disliked him. Who could bring back monsters and then raise them to do your dirty work? Sans had just been a young soul and when he’d started refusing, Gaster had found blackmail in form of Papyrus to keep him in check.

“hey, don’t cry,” Sans said and one of his hands left yours to come up and wipe a tear from your eyes. His boney thumb felt oddly soft and comforting as it stroked over your cheek, catching the tear that had escaped without your permission.

“I’m sorry, it’s just… I can imagine you and Papyrus. Young and scared and some scientist just taking advantage of you.”

“to be fair, he’s the one that brought us life.”

“No, Sans. That does not give him the right to abuse you. Don’t you ever think that just because he brought you into this world, you are indebted to him. You did not choose him but he did choose you and Papyrus. It was his responsibility to look after you, not your responsibility to obey him. Don’t you ever think that,” you insisted.

Sans’ white pinpricks were shimmering again and he looked stunned at the passion in your voice. His hand lingered on your cheek as he spoke again.

“well, that was dear old dad. sort of. eventually, he grew too tired of my failures and built a new machine that could take _him_ properly into the void. i tried to warn him but he was obsessed and relentless. he went into the void and never came back. i tried to look for him but i couldn’t… so i took pap in my arms and got us out of the old laboratory he kept us locked in. we joined the rest of the monsters and lived a somewhat normal life, at least in underground terms. pap doesn’t remember much, if any, from our time with gaster. ”

“I’m so sorry, Sans.”

“it was a long time ago. i have handled the void ever since. i could blink and not worry about passing through because i can do it so quickly but after we almost got stuck… it reminded me of all the times i was nearly incinerated when i was learning to pass through it.”

You leaned forward and closed the distance between you as you wrapped Sans up in the biggest hug yet. You were hugging almost uncomfortably around his boney form and you tried to push all your hope and comfort into him.

He didn’t deserve to have gone through that. A lot of things made more sense now; his hesitance to be looked at analytically, his overprotectiveness of Papyrus, his almost impossible weak HP and his general mistrust of everyone.

W.D. Gaster had fucked him up from the moment he was made into a tiny monster.

You kept hugging Sans for a very long time. His arms had come around to hold onto you too and the grip was firm. You wouldn’t be able to get out of his arms unless he released you.

The thought should have scared you but you’d gotten used to Papyrus’ bone-crushing hugs over the past few weeks and you knew Sans would never hold you against your will again.

“can i try something?” Sans asked.

“Of course,” you said instantly, and you wondered if there was something he’d ask of you that you wouldn’t give him. At the moment, it didn’t feel like it and blindly agreeing didn’t seem as scary as it objectively was.

You had been sat in the embrace on the sofa with you almost crawled into Sans’ lap but now the world shifted around you. You realized the feeling of going into the void and you hugged Sans a little tighter and the cold feeling swooshed over you.

But a moment later, it was gone and you were laying on your side on something soft with Sans still in your arms. You looked up at his skull, which was grinning widely and genuinely. Out of the corner of your eye, you noticed the layout of his bedroom.

He’d teleported you from the sofa to his bed without any trouble.

“Warn a girl next time, huh, Sans?” you teased and hugged him a little tighter because you were happy he had managed to use a shortcut.

“i did!” Sans argued and you registered the complete change in his tone. Before he’d been somber and down and withheld and now he sounded open, happy and lighter.

“Silly skeleton,” you muttered and moved to press a kiss to his cheekbone. It had been an impulsive move but when your action caught up with you, your eyes went wide. Hugging was one thing but cheek kisses felt like a different territory.

Just the fact that your lips were still humming with the energy that he gave off from where you’d touched them to his bone.

“did you just kiss me?” Sans asked and sounded as taken back as you felt.

“Err… no?” you said for whatever stupid reason your brain was making that the word that came out of your mouth.

But Sans didn’t looked offended or annoyed, in fact his grin widened a little.

“i see…” he said, sounding on the verge of calling you out on your bullshit.

It felt like too much. You’d just gotten a glimpse into Sans’ backstory and your mind was still reeling and trying to catch up. At the same time, you thought of Madelyn and Toriel’s words about you and Sans. You’d gotten close over the past few weeks, that much was evident for anyone to see but the way they spoke about it, seemed to suggest there was something else to the two of you too.

It felt like too much to tackle right now. You were still working out how to disable the power-neutralizing disk and figuring out how to bring Frisk’s powers back. And if you managed the latter, Sans would want Frisk to set this timeline back years, effectively erasing everything that had passed between you. It was too much for your mind to handle already without tacking on possible feelings for the skeleton monster currently in your arms. And yet…

Sans seemed to sense your inner dilemma because his grin turned softer and his white pinpricks were gleaming like never before.

“should i make you a shortcut back to the sofa?” Sans asked, his voice uncertain and testing.

In all honesty, you didn’t want to move. Sans’ bed was without a doubt much more comfortable than the sofa and you’d secretly been wondering if you’d have an opportunity to sleep in it again.

“No,” you said. “I’ll stay, if you’ll let me.”

“i don’t think there’s anything i won’t let you do,” Sans said and chuckled before calling his duvet, which was on the floor, to move over the two of you with just a wave of his hand.

“Can I try something?” you asked, suddenly knowing that you’d never be able to fall asleep if you didn’t take advantage of the moment presented before you. You had wanted to pull away from the feeling bubbling in your stomach but that was ridiculous. In just days, your entire adult existence might be erased anyway if Frisk managed to reset.

“of course.”

With his permission, you moved your face to his skull, going in slowly enough to let him pull away if he wanted. He stayed perfectly still as you pressed a chaste kiss to his teeth, which seemed softer than his skull. He moved forward to apply the lightest pressure, kissing you back in his own way.

As you pulled back, you smiled at him before turning over, so you were laying with your back to him. Now that he couldn’t see you, you were smiling like a maniac, oddly proud of yourself. You’d just kissed Sans, properly, well sort of at least. It was a step, towards what you didn’t really know.

Sans huffed out a breath of air before letting himself fall back on his back.

“what are you doing to me, human?” Sans muttered, evidently more to himself than to you because he didn’t sound like he was expecting an answer.

You gave him one anyway.

“I have no idea, skeleton monster, and I truly have no idea what you’re doing to me either.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally we got a some information about Sans' backstory! I really like that whole scene on the sofa in this chapter and I think it's such an important point the reader brings up about Gaster and how he treated Sans and Papyrus. And she is finally starting to admit that she might feel a little soft for our short skeleton. But so many things still hang in the balance but at least Sans is feeling back to his old shortcut ways again. I'm also very happy Tori finally got a chance to talk to her one-on-one. As always, feedback is appreciated.
> 
> Also, I'm finally nearing the end of this fic in my word document (chapters are pre-written so there's still a while for you to go). But at the moment I'm working on chapter 32 and I think there'll only be two more chapters after that if the planning holds, which honestly it might not because I just keep adding stuff. But I'll make sure to mark it when I know the final chapter count.
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday the 28th of January.


	26. A Startling Revelation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They all wanted to make Frisk gain their power back but it didn't seem like it would be an easy fix at all. She felt a little out of her depth but perhaps an outside perspective might lead to an important discovery.

The first time you’d fallen asleep next to Sans, it had been an accident. The second time you had both been so exhausted and giddy from successfully escaping. The third time you didn’t have an excuse for it at all.

You had just wanted to stay near Sans and the thought of going back down to the sofa felt wrong, even if the place had been your unofficial bed for weeks now.

Papyrus was the one who woke the two of you and you felt slightly embarrassed but the younger skeleton hadn’t seemed to mind, at all actually. He’s just knocked loudly on the locked door calling out your names and announcing that pancakes would be ready in five minutes and you should get your lazy butts out of bed.

It was almost anticlimactic that Papyrus had just known that you’d be in Sans’ bed when he couldn’t find you on the sofa where you usually slept.

“How did he know?” you muttered to yourself as you got up and stretched after you reluctantly had pulled out from Sans’ warm embrace.

Cuddling bones should not be that comfortable but Sans was always radiating heat and while his bones where hard, they never really bothered you.

“pap is smarter than most people give him credit for. and not always as naïve as he appears,” Sans said form the deep under the covers, making no move to get up.

You yanked the duvet off him, making him instinctively curl into a ball. He was in a T-shirt and shorts like normal after he had tossed his hoodie on the floor after taking you through the shortcut last night.

You picked it up off the floor, intending to give it to him, but instead you slipped it on. It was baggy and cozy and just what you needed on a cold morning. You’d change out of it after breakfast when you had to head to the lab. Sans didn’t feel temperature like you did anyway.

“stealing my hoodie already?” he asked. “i heard about humans doing that when…”

He stopped, looking as if he hadn’t intended to keep speaking but you were pretty sure you knew where he’d been heading. Finding it quite adorable, you jumped on the bed, landing on you knees right next to him as you settled a hand on his collarbone and leaned in to press a quick kiss to his cheekbone, just like you’d done last night. You smiled brightly as you pulled away, because that was something you could actually do, which still baffled you.

You didn’t want to talk about what it meant. Not yet. It was still too surreal and you hadn’t yet wrapped your head around everything.

Sans was frowning while looking surprised at your actions and you jumped off the bed just as quickly as you’d gotten on it. You needed to brush your teeth, so you made your way out to the bathroom where you freshened up before headed downstairs to find Papyrus flipping the last pancake onto the stack.

“You learnt all on your own?” you asked impressed. You’d never gotten around to teaching him how to make pancakes.

“YES, FOR I, PAPYRUS THE GREAT, IS AN EXCELLENT COOK. IT’S ALMOST LIKE I DON’T NEED ANYONE TO TEACH ME ANYMORE. NYH HEH. WELL, NO, I STILL WANT YOU TO TEACH ME. IT’S A LOT OF FUN!” Papyrus said and he went from cocky to adorable in just a couple of sentences and you were not even surprised.

You sat down at the breakfast table and Sans popped into his seat from seemingly nowhere and Papyrus scolded him for his manners but you were just happy that he was back to going through the void without being scared.

It had been surprisingly easy for him to get over it but you knew he’d been used to doing it for years and just momentarily lost faith in his abilities. It made you smile that your conversation last night had been enough to get him back to his old ways.

Breakfast was lovely and afterwards you all headed back to the laboratory to work on the now two remaining problems. However, before the day was finished, only one problem remained.

As Mettaton had been fixed, Alphys had helped you with the power-neutralizing disk and she’d stopped coming with snide comments like when you first met. She still flinched a bit when you got too close but you couldn’t expect her hesitance to wash away instantly. She was kinder towards you, even praising your work. You bounced ideas off each other quite easily and it was a joy to work with her now that she was less hostile towards you.

You’d managed to build your own disk that could counteract whatever the human-made disk was emitting. You had helped but Alphys had really been the brains behind it since she was very technologically savvy. You’d tested it on Sans’ powers and everyone in the laboratory had done a cheer of victory when you had been successful.

A little part of you was scared what this would mean for the humans who counted on that piece of technology to protect them. But you’d been shown time and time again that monsters weren’t inherently evil and set on destroying the human race, no matter what the media insisted on telling everyone.

However, reactivating Frisk’s supposed abilities had hit dead-end after dead-end. Undyne and Alphys had gone out on a date eventually, even if Alphys had wanted to stay and help. You’d all brushed it off. It was important that everyone took some time for themselves every once in a while and you felt like Undyne might rip your heads off if you’d tried to get in the way of her romantic evening she had planned days ago.

That left you, Sans and Frisk in the laboratory. Toriel had been there earlier but she’d been feeling faint and Sans had taken her home trough a shortcut, so she could move as little as possible. You’d watched how gently he’d placed his hands on her arm and you were reminded that you still hadn’t gotten the story of what had passed between them. Papyrus had just gone home to start preparing for dinner, saying adamantly that you needed to remember to eat and that he expected you home in an hour.

Earlier in the day, Sans devised several tests, something about save points and connecting with your soul but after concentrating for minutes on end, Frisk would just sigh and sign that they didn’t feel any different. It was clear that Sans was at the end of his rope.

You knew little of the mechanisms of the soul but you’d been reading up in old books that Sans had found for you to try to catch up.

“And your theory is that this loss of ability is because Frisk’s soul glow weakened when Toriel went into a coma?” you asked and glanced at both Frisk and Sans from the book you’d been skimming through.

Frisk shrugged while looking unsure before glancing to Sans.

“possibly. after the bombing frisk was... heartbroken and their soul color had dulled,” Sans said.

Frisk signed something to Sans that ended with being directed at you. You decoded that it was along the line of having to tell you about something.

“What do you need to tell me? Frisk? Sans?”

Sans was still hesitating and Frisk went and grabbed the whiteboard and the marker.

_We don’t know if I can even do it on the surface_

_Sans made me promise not to mess with time up here_

You watched Frisk’s written words and looked at Sans, who was keeping his skull neutral. Frisk wiped the board clear and wrote again.

_We only tried after everything happened_

_Maybe it only worked when I was trapped?_

“i don’t know, frisk,” Sans said, looking only at Frisk and ignoring you, which was unusual. “we’ve talked about it before but i don’t think it’s the setting up here making you unable to do it. i think it might be your soul losing hope after…”

Frisk signed angrily at Sans and you caught the gist of what the teenager was saying: I did not lose hope!

Then Frisk’s movements became too quick for you to follow but the frown on their face and the new anger towards Sans was obvious, even if you didn’t understand what they were telling him.

“i know, frisk. i didn’t mean it like that. i’m sorry,” Sans apologized and Frisk mellowed out a bit before scribbling across the whiteboard for you.

_Sorry_

“No worries, Frisk. I know this situation puts a lot on your shoulders, far more than should ever be on the shoulders of someone so young. You’re doing amazingly. I was just wondering,” you said. It was truly too much pressure on someone with such a young soul and that thought made you have an idea. “Hey, is it possible for us to see your soul?”

Both Frisk and Sans gasped and you felt like you’d done something culturally inappropriate by asking. You rushed to mollify the situation.

“No, I don’t mean any offence by it. I just… feel like if the magic time-manipulation that you can allegedly do is truly in your _soul_ , which seems to make the most sense, it might be beneficial to take a proper look. It’s perfectly safe, isn’t it Sans? You had my soul out just over a week ago and I feel fine.”

Frisk turned to look at Sans with complete astonishment on their young face. They signed something but because of the angle you couldn’t get a good look at their hands, even if you’d been able to recognize the signs. Sans looked slightly abashed.

“yeah, i’m aware, frisk. and doe, i’m sure you remember how well that went. soul energy isn’t something to be messing with.”

“I realize that but you could see the shatter lines on my soul clearly when you called it out, remember? Perhaps, you’ll be able to see or sense something on Frisk’s soul.”

“doe, calling out a human’s soul will leave them completely vulnerable to influences and even more to hurt. it’s not a practice one should enter into without caution.”

You thought back to when you’d asked Sans to pull out your soul and how he’d been so hesitant about going through with it. He hadn’t explained the willingness to answer the people, who had a hold on your soul, you’d experience until after the fact but you didn’t regret it. You had wanted to see your soul and you had trusted Sans then and you did even more now, despite his almost slip-up. Sans and Frisk were family to each other. Surely, that meant that they trusted each other too.

“I’m just saying it’s an option,” you said and looked at Frisk. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable, Frisk.”

Frisk was signing, slowly for your benefit, as they reassured you that you hadn’t made them uncomfortable. And then there was the sign for trust again along with Sans’ name.

“I think it is worth a shot, but I can leave if you’d rather only Sans be here?” you asked but instantly, Frisk’s hand shot out and landed on your arm before they pulled back their hand to do two signs.

Stay. Please.

“Sure, I’ll stay, if that’s what you want,” you said and smiled before reaching out and giving Frisk’s shoulder a reassuring squeeze.

“you’re insane, the lot of you,” Sans whispered under his breath but there was no ill intention behind his words, only fondness.

Seeing Frisk’s soul being called out was an experience. It was odd to be on the outside looking in, even if your soul reacted too, moving around restlessly in your chest. The room was bathed in rich red light as Frisk’ soul came out.

At first glance, Frisk’s soul was absolutely beautiful. The red light felt warm and reassuring and you could feel the sheer power behind the young human teenager. However, when you watched more carefully you saw the few black spots, small but large enough that they took away from the pure beauty of Frisk’s determined soul when you looked at it up close.

“frisk,” Sans whispered, studying the soul he had floating over his palm. “i should have taken a proper look before. these spots… i’m so sorry, frisk.”

“What?” you asked and Frisk looked like they wanted to ask the same thing.

Sans’ voice was trembling slightly when he answered. “determined souls are rather special. they’re known to be tougher than the rest. resilient. stubborn. unstoppable. they are made from the very fabric that can keep you alive when you’re almost dead, which is why they can appear as shatter lines regardless of soul color. but these black spots… that’s a sign that determination has faltered. the feeling of hopelessness settle on the soul and suck away strength.”

Frisk signed something along the lines of: How did it happen?

Sans was clenching his jaw so tight you were afraid it might snap.

“it must have been when everyone got hurt in the explosion and toriel fell into a coma. you thought up might lose the new family you’d just found. you stayed strong for so long but she was out for years… i’m so sorry, i didn’t see it, frisk,” Sans said and suddenly, he was shoving Frisk’s soul back in place and moving forward to wrap his arms around Frisk.

You reached up to your cheek and found that you had started tearing up without noticing. Now the tears burnt in your eyes.

Frisk. The human who’d singlehandedly managed to free all the monsters had started to lose hope. The bright determination within them had begun to question if just willing something to happen would be enough. It had been. Toriel had pulled back from the coma but it had taken more than three years.

Those black spots were remarked that Frisk had begun to give up hope.

You sniffled, accidentally attracting the attention of Frisk and Sans. However, Frisk just smiled, ever the big heart, and reached out a hand to you, which you took and seconds later you were in the hug too.

Your heart ached for the teenager.

“We will find a way to help you, Frisk,” you promised, even if you had no business making promises you weren’t sure you could keep. Maybe it was the leftover feeling of determination floating in the air but you so desperately wanted it to be true. Even if you still weren’t sure about the whole reset thing, you wanted Frisk to have an all red soul again. It wasn’t shatter lines like in yours, where your soul had almost been ripped to bits. There had to be a way to get the spots to change color again.

They were the leftover effect of losing hope and if you could only get hope properly back into them again…

Frisk wiped away a tear when you broke apart and reached for the whiteboard.

_But I feel **determined** now. I feel hopeful now. _

_Why does my soul still have black spots?_

“i don’t think it’s simple to get rid off. usually, the brightness of the color will change depending on emotions but yours must have gotten so dark that the black started to take hold. but it’s probably what’s affecting your magic.”

Frisk was using their hands now but your sign language had improved a lot of the last five days. They were asking what we could about it.

“i don’t know, frisk. but we will figure it out. i don’t think it’s irreversible.”

Suddenly, the alarm on Sans’ phone started going off. You’d set it to remind you five minutes before you’d promised to be back for dinner with Papyrus.

“Do you want to have dinner at ours?” you asked Frisk, who shook their head and signed they wanted to go home to Toriel.

“we’ll continue working tomorrow,” Sans promised before extending a hand to Frisk, which they took trustingly while waving goodbye to you.

Sans and Frisk disappeared and you started jotting down notes and initial thoughts on how to work on Frisk’s soul.

Your focus had been divided before but now it was all about Frisk. Sans popped back a couple of minutes later and it had probably only taken so long because Toriel usually loved a little chat whenever Sans dropped off Frisk.

“writing down any brilliant ideas?” Sans asked and walked up behind you and you felt a hand resting carefully on your waist. Sans’ touch was light and slightly unsure but you leaned into it to show him it was okay.

You looked over your shoulder to give him a little smile and then finished writing your thoughts down. You looked over your rushed scribbles.

“I don’t know. Maybe. I just… I’m so sad on Frisk’s behalf. Black spots of hopelessness? I mean… that’s _horrible_. And I know that’s coming from the idiot, who carries shatter lines because I almost gave up on life but I just want to wrap them up in a blanket and hold them until everything stops being so horrible. And I know I might have pushed it with suggesting that you called out their soul but look at where it got us. But I could gauge from both of your reactions that it isn’t something you’d normally even consider?”

Sans hesitated. “one’s soul is a very private thing. it’s not something you flaunt around. i can read souls within the bodies but not as well as when they’re out.”

“Frisk can do it too,” you told Sans. “When I first met them, they wrote down that they saw my kindness and integrity. I didn’t think much about it back then, until after you showed me my soul and I remembered the connection between colors and attributes.”

“huh. a human of many talents,” Sans contemplated.

“We should get home to Papyrus or he’ll be fuming,” you said and leaned back so that your back was pressed against his front, Sans’ hand still sturdy on you waist.

“as you wish,” Sans said and you went through the void effortlessly and appeared in the living room just as Papyrus was setting the food on the table.

“IMPECCABLE TIMING! NOW LET’S EAT. I HAVE CHOSEN A CLASSIC. SPAGETTI!” Papyrus beamed. “YOU HAVE BOTH BEEN WORKING SO HARD THAT I FIGURED YOU DESERVED A TREAT.”

“Thank you, Pap,” you said gratefully and hoped you’d be able to keep polite dinner conversation while still debating the idea that had started forming in your brain since you’d viewed Frisk’s soul.

Papyrus insisted on television time after dinner like you normally did. You had complied but you hadn’t been paying much attention to the screen or the chatter Papyrus provided as usual. It was still nice, even if your mind was busy chasing down leads and considering means. You’d been sat between the brothers, which had become your usual spot, and that suited you just fine when it came to being covered by the cozy blanket.

When the movie had finished, you weren’t even sure what it had been about, Papyrus announced that he was getting ready to bed.

“I’LL COME AND SAVE YOU FROM SANS’ CLUTCHES AND CONTAGIOUS LAZINESS TOMORROW TOO, DOE. WORRY NOT!” Papyrus had said as he climbed the stairs, and because you’d been so in your own head for the last two hours, it took you a moment to figure what he was getting at.

You smiled and nodded while biding him a good night but you hid you face in your hands the moment he was out of sight.

“at least, you don’t have to worry about baby bro approving,” Sans teased and nudged you with his foot.

“I guess,” you commented. Were you moving towards a stage where having family’s approval was something to even consider? You weren’t even sure what to call you and Sans. You’d grown to become friends but there had always been something else between you too.

Where it had been easy to fall into a wonderful platonic friendship with Papyrus, things had never felt that easy with Sans. It was like there had always been something between you that you couldn’t quite define.

Firstly, you’d thought it might be the whole kidnapper and kidnapped but the feeling had still hung around after you’d been told that you were free to go but now you knew it had to be something else. If you’d learnt anything from the past few weeks, it had to be the fact that you valued Sans’ input a whole lot. He’d shaped your world in ways you couldn’t ever have imagined. And it had been quite nice to be able to reach out and touch him without worry and being able to lean in to kiss him. You were sure that stupid grin had been stuck to your face as you’d fallen asleep last night.

“are you going to tell me what have had the wheels turning in your head for the last couple of hours?” Sans asked, voice curious but not demanding.

He never took a demanding tone with you anymore. You weren’t sure he’d actually taken it since he made demanded that you didn’t hurt his brother when he’d taken you into their home for the first time.

“I might need to sleep on it,” you said honestly. It had started out as a silly idea and a farfetched one too but the more you’re wracked your mind, the better it had started to look. But it would mean going to outside help regarding Frisk and you weren’t sure how Sans would even react to the notion, let alone the reality. He had a strained attitude towards humans he didn’t know.

“sure, just know you can tell me if you need another set of eye sockets on it,” Sans joked. “tea?”

You nodded and smiled at him as you reached over to your notebook and jotted down some more thoughts while Sans was making tea. You had been itching to reach for it but it would have been rude during movie time, even if your head hadn’t been in watching it anyway.

Sans returned with steaming mugs of your favorite tea. You were usually the one who made the tea and you weren’t sure how he’d managed to make it just to your liking. Everything indicated he must have paid attention to what you usually did and that warmed you more than the mug of hot tea in your hands.

“you have a great smile,” Sans said, out of the blue, as he sat down next to you and moved the blanket to cover both of you. He sat closer than before, making his knee lean on your leg.

“Thanks, a skele-ton,” you joked back and got the exact reaction you wanted; Sans leaned slightly closer, as his grin widen and his white pinpricks shimmered.

You started sipping your tea slowly and then pushed away your notebook. It had taken up enough of your mind space for now, even if there had been another question that had also pulled on some of your brainpower. With that out of the way, perhaps you’d be able to focus more on helping Frisk.

“Hey Sans, can I ask you something? About Toriel?”

Sans shifted slightly and for a moment you thought he was pulling away from you but instead he moved slightly closer, even if his expression seemed a little deflated.

“what do you want to know?”

“I just… I see the way the two of you interact and I sense how your tone turns softer when you speak about her. I know she’s essentially Frisk’s mother, which is why it makes sense that a three-year coma is enough to leave black spots on their soul. But I can’t help but wonder if that time wasn’t hard on you too? The two of you seem close.”

Sans put down his now drained mug on the coffee table and reached over to take your hand into his lap. You let him guide your hand and waited as he turned it over a couple of times and traced the lines of your palm.

“we were. like i told you, she’s the one who told me to be kind towards humans who passed through the underground. i didn’t know it was her at the time. she was just a faceless monster that i exchanged jokes with through a door but that was the first time in a long time i let my guard down around someone. and then we came up here and we started spending more time together. i guess you humans might call it dating.”

So you’d been right. Sans and Toriel did have romantic history. You felt an urge to pull back your hand and you wondered if you’d kissed someone who was linked to someone else and you felt suddenly bad about your past actions. Sans must have sensed it because he looked up and his grin was reassuring.

“it’s all in the past. and it wasn’t what we monsters would call mating. not yet. asgore was still in love with her, so you can imagine how popular that made me. honestly, i thought they would work it out one day and toriel would move on. that would have been fine for me, i was just happy to have someone, even if just for a little while. toriel also started to want me to be more of a father figure to the kid and i just… wasn’t sure about that. gradually, her and asgore got back on better terms… and i told her i wanted to step back.”

You listened carefully as Sans was still playing with your hand in his lap. You hadn’t expected him to say something like that and you wanted to reach over and hug him or kiss him. He had been thankful to have someone love him just for a little while. He was so used to having things ripped away and people betraying him that he didn’t even wish for more.

“When was this, Sans?” you asked because if Asgore had still been alive then it would have been within the first year that they emerged from the Underground.

“we hung out for less than a year and stopped just a few weeks before… you know. it was fine. we parted as friends. i always knew it wouldn’t be us but she was kind and comforting and she kept me centered. and then the bombing happened and we thought we lost both our king and our queen. but toriel, she’s a tough one. she hung in, even after we had all stopped believing she would. frisk wouldn’t hear of taking her off life support, so we didn’t. i guess the kid was right, yet again.”

This time you didn’t hesitate, you reached out to hug Sans as you practically climbed into his lap too. You squeezed him tight and he leaned forward, skull resting against your shoulder. His breath was fanning over your skin as he tightened his grip on you and let out a ragged breath.

“it’s fine, doe,” Sans said. “but that’s why i talk about her like that sometimes. sans papyrus, she was the first monster to make me believe that we could get up here and live in harmony with you humans. it was a nice fantasy… before everything crumbled.”

It was sending chills down you spine to have him so close and vulnerable in your arms. You weren’t sure how to reply to all the new information you had just learned. It was like whenever you turned another corner, another truckload of information was heading your way to be dumped over your head. Sans had found company and comfort in Toriel, only to step aside for whom he thought was her real love and then she’d been comatose for years after the bombing.

“i used to miss her a lot,” Sans confessed. “even when she woke up, things were different and she had to grieve asgore. and we’re still not meant to be mates. i know that in my soul.”

“It’s okay to miss her, Sans,” you said and your hands had found the way to the back of his skull, essentially cradling him against your chest. “She still cares about you.”

Sans shook his head slightly. “it’s different now. she’s family in the way that frisk is family. she doesn’t put my soul at ease like before.”

You pondered his words: putting his soul at ease. It was an odd and foreign phrase but you could hear form the way that Sans said it that it probably was a thing for monsters. But that wasn’t what made your head spin and think about his words.

Being around Sans had always entailed some indescribable feeling, which had only grown the more time you’d spend with him. However, it seemed there was a coined phrase for what you were feeling and you just hadn’t known it.

When you were with Sans, your soul did seem at ease.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHH!! I hope you liked this chapter. I just love the whole concept of souls in the Undertale game so much but it's been a joy to put my own spin on the lore. And I've wanted to show Frisk's soul for so damn long. And we finally got to hear about Sans and Toriel's past - a few of you had already guessed it but were some of you surprised? My little poor Sansy just wants love but he doesn't really think that he deserves it. As always, any feedback is highly appreciated. (Sorry for the update being half an hour late!)
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday the 4th of February.


	27. A Helping Hand

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They were stuck on how to help and heal Frisk's soul but she had the idea to contact her old favorite professor, who might provide fresh new insight, if they could get him to agree to help.

The following morning, you spend searching the web for certain academic articles form a specific professor. It was the professor who had taught your favorite course in relation to your minor in monster history. He had been the one to recommend you for your internship and you were sure he’d pulled some stings to get Professor Jeffords to accept you. They had apparently been friends once upon a time and even after their falling out, they had still been willing to listen to each other to a degree.

Professor Goodwin had chosen to focus his research on souls, monster and human souls and the differences between them, as well as how this new information might impact how we interacted. It was a limited field of research, which lacked all the monster background research on account of the war breaking out.

However, some of the monsters’ research had been shared in the early days and you knew that had been what Goodwin had built on. You’d asked him about it after class several times, beyond fascinated with the whole thing. He had held that class over a year ago.

You had a gut feeling that he might be able to help out with Frisk and you had a hunch that he was a monster sympathizer in every sense of the word but without the official label. He had been criticized for it after making an exam assignment that didn’t include any of the things you now knew as fabricated monster facts from the media.

When you brought up the idea to Alphys and Sans, they had mixed reactions. Surprisingly, Alphys lit up with recognition at the name and she was instantly on board while Sans blatantly rejected getting any other human near Frisk. The way he spoke almost seemed like he didn’t regard you as a human anymore and you wondered what category you had walked into in Sans’ mind.

“B-but Sans! It’s a gr-great idea! I m-met with Professor G-Goodwin years ago. He seemed like sensible m-man,” Alphys argued and you were too baffled as she spoke on behalf of your idea. Just weeks ago, she’d been scared and hateful towards you and now she was ready to work with a human?

“i don’t care. we’ll figure it out here with people we trust. i’m not letting anyone experiment on frisk,” Sans said defensively.

You didn’t press him because you knew where he was coming from. Not only had he been experimented on when he’d been taken captive at the POCAM base but Gaster had undoubtedly done his fair share of experiments on the cluster of bones that he found in the void.

Last night, you’d stayed in Sans’ embrace on the sofa for a long time, just breathing the same air. When you’d finally gotten up, Sans had offered out his hand and you’d taken it as you had gone to sleep in his room yet again. It felt like so many of his walls were crumbling down for you but you were hesitant to open up about your own tragic background and that seemed like it kept a distance between you. Or the lack of definition of what you were to each other might also have an impact on the distance.

“Sans,” you said and stepped up to him and put a calming hand on his shoulder blade. “I know you want us to figure out this on our own but there’s no shame in reaching out for help when you’re stuck. You don’t have to do it all alone. Professor Goodwin taught a class I really loved last year and I think he might be the exact person we need. He’s specialized in soul research and last I heard he’s done amazing work, even if it isn’t public yet. I know both you and Alphys are very capable scientists and I would trust you with my soul, in fact I have already done that with you, but a new perspective can help when you’re stuck.”

“but doe…” Sans practically whined and leaned into you, which made Alphys’ eyes widen and she started fidgeting. “i trust your opinion but this is frisk… our frisk. everyone is after them. we can’t just go to a university.”

“Then we’ll bring him here,” you reasoned and now Alphys looked a lot less keen on the idea.

“we can’t just go find him.”

“You know very well that we can do that, Sans. You could shortcut us both to his location.”

“can’t find him when i’ve never met him.”

“Then I’ll tell you the location of the university and personally escort you to his office.”

“right, just a skeleton monster and a highly-wanted monster sympathizer taking a stroll around campus.”

You saw that he clearly wasn’t backing down from this, at least not right now. He was stubborn but you were stubborn too and you could wait him out. Alphys seemed extremely uncomfortable with what quickly developed into a staring contest, even if she also seemed to be secretly enjoying it.

In the end, it was Sans who caved, quite literally. He let himself fall forward and your hands reached out to catch him. He was being awfully affectionate since last night, seeking every opportunity to reach out and touch you.

“we ask frisk and if they agree… then i suppose it wouldn’t harm to go see what the professor knows…” Sans muttered, defeated.

Frisk had absolutely no problem seeking help from someone you trusted, so off you went, even if Sans kept voicing his concerns.

“i have a bad feeling about this,” Sans warned you.

“Stop worrying,” you hissed and stepped out of his embrace. He’d taken you through the void without a problem again but you’d felt how he’d clung a little tighter to you than he did before you both had almost gotten lost in it a week ago.

Covering greater distances took more energy for him and it seemed that he was still scared of getting lost, even if he didn’t seem willing to admit it to anyone.

He’d dropped you outside of the campus building and you had approximately ten minutes before Professor Goodwin’s drop-in office hours started.

“i still don’t see why i couldn’t wear my blue hoodie,” Sans grumbled, still very dissatisfied with the whole thing.

“Because everyone knows you always wear that fluffy blue hoodie and though I love it, we don’t need people recognizing you based on your fashion choices,” you argued.

If Alphys hadn’t backed you up, you were pretty sure that he wouldn’t have agreed to come see Professor Goodwin. And it wasn’t like you could just go yourself. You’d seen the media coverage of the attack on the POCAM base. The photo you’d had taken for your employee ID when you’d been an intern had been plastered all over the screen.

Traitor. Monster sympathizer. Terrorist.

If you’d gone by car, you’d definitely have been found out. Sans taking you there was only real option. Also when you’d even insinuated going yourself, he’d grumbled and insisted that you needed back-up anyway.

Which had brought you to the disguises. Or really Sans’ disguise. You’d pretty much dressed like you normally would have if you had to attend classes. You secretly hoped that you wouldn’t run into any classmates or professors that might recognize you. Sans being a skeleton monster was the bigger issue though.

Sans was in jeans, sneakers and a black hoodie with a big hood pulled up over his skull. The hoodie was oversized on him and he could hide his hands in the pouches. As long as no one tried to look him in the face and he kept his head down, you should be fine.

“Let’s go,” you said and started walking, Sans following after you blindly with his eyes cast down. However, it took less than a minute before he’d bumped into two students and almost knocked them on their ass.

“Sorry,” you spoke for Sans and smiled apologetically, while you moved to cover him from view. “He’s such a klutz.”

“Your boyfriend should watch where he’s going,” the guy of the pair said and scowled in Sans’ direction, almost as if to make threateningly eye contact, which he couldn’t do because you were standing between them and Sans was staring at the floor with the hood hiding his skull face.

“Will do,” you promised, overly chipper and they shook their heads before they kept going.

“this is not going to work,” Sans said and he soundly oddly amused. You were in a serious situation here.

“You have the weirdest humor,” you said and shook your head before you reached out for the hand in his pocket and pulled it out to interlink your fingers. You pulled slightly on Sans’ sleeve so that it covered most of his hand.

Sans didn’t protest as you started dragging him along the halls. His hand was warm and steady in yours and it felt oddly calming to have physical contact as you navigated through the halls you knew so well.

You were almost there when you heard someone shout your name. It had been so long since you’d been around people who knew your real name that it almost didn’t register. All the monsters still called you Doe and only Sans knew you real name. In a fit of panic, you shoved Sans down one of the quiet halls and blocked his whole body with yours.

You could hear the guy who’s called you name talk to someone, seeming very confused and unsure and then you heard footsteps approach.

“This is just great,” you muttered before you reached up top grab both sides of Sans’ hood and pull his face close to his. If Sans had had a nose, your noses would have been knocked together. You were breathing the same air and Sans had gone completely stiff and his white pinpricks shimmers so brightly up close.

“what are…”

“Hands on my back, under my shirt now,” you commanded and Sans followed the order, even if he seemed confused. When his boney hands met your skin you drew in a sharp breath as one of his fingertips gently grazed your spine.

This was a fucking stupid move but the guy had sounded so unsure. It made sense. Even if you’d shared a class with him, he wouldn’t expect to see you around campus like you hadn’t got your very own wanted posters. But this idea was so stupidly cliché.

“Kiss me,” you asked and suddenly your heart was racing for a different reason. Sans looked unsure but he diligently pushed his face towards you.

You’d kissed him before but not like this. Your lips brushed over his teeth again but then he surprised you by opening his mouth and oh, okay, he definitely had a tongue, even if it made no sense in relation to his skeleton body. Of course, he wasn’t a human skeleton. He was a creature made of magic that looked like a human skeleton and he had once told you that he could manipulate his body beyond the appearance of just bones.

There was no epic battle for dominance between your tongues. But they met, awkwardly at first as you tried to get used to each other. The texture was different from a human tongue but it left a tingly sensation when you eventually pulled back.

While you’d been making out, Sans’ hands under your shirt and placed on your lower back had pressed you closer and you’d struggled to keep your hands just on the hoodie to make sure that the person didn’t see Sans’ monster face.

“Is he gone?” you whispered, hoping Sans could use his monster senses to feel it out.

“about two minutes ago,” he chuckled and leaned forward to nuzzle against your neck before you finally broke apart.

“You could have told me,” you said and slapped his arm but there was no intention to hurt behind the action.

“can’t blame a guy for taking his shot,” Sans said nonchalantly. “all is fair in love and war.”

“I wasn’t aware the both of those were applicable yet,” you countered but you didn’t give Sans or yourself any moment to dwell on the meaning of your statement. “We’re going to Professor Goodwin before any of his students show up. Hurry up, bone boy,” you said and intertwined your fingers again as you went back out to the hall from before and made your way towards the intended office.

As soon as you saw the plaque with the correct name on the door, you opened it and pulled you and Sans inside before closing it behind you.

Professor Goodwin looked like you remembered him. He wore small spectacles, balanced too far down his nose, hair tussled from having hands run through it repeatedly and the shirt that had ten identical siblings in his closet.

“Office hours isn’t for another two minutes,” he mumbled into his papers before finishing scribbling something down on the page in front of him. He sighed and without looking up, he spoke again. “What do you want?”

“All of your research on human souls and preferably your expertise as well,” you told him.

His head snapped up and confusion was written on his face. Your eyes locked and you felt Sans’ magic power up around you. His head was still down but it was like he sensed the changed atmosphere in the room.

“Merlin’s beard, it’s you. I cannot believe my eyes,” he exclaimed and got up from his seat but didn’t make a move to step out from behind it.

“Well, it’s me alright,” you said and did a little ta-dah movement. “And I was serious about that research.”

“My star student, now the Girl Who Runs With Monsters,” he said and you couldn’t pinpoint his tone. You’d heard the name. The media had taken a liking to it but you weren’t sure why. You’d never actually been seen running around with monsters, except that one time inside of POCAM when you thought there still was a chance every one of you could escape.

“Sure,” you said.

“What do you want with my soul research?” Professor Goodwin asked. “And who is that behind you?”

“How do you feel about monsters, professor?” you asked instead of answering.

“We are at war with the monsters and all monsters should be captured or killed. At least that is what I will answer to anyone who asks. You know better than most I’ve never been anti monsters. I think we could learn too much from each other to let that be obscured by something as tedious as opposing sides.”

A smile broke out on your face and some of the nerves from before evaporated. You had been fairly sure that your old professor wasn’t a monster hater but it was got to get it confirmed.

“In that case, I’d like for you to meet Sans,” you said and stepped aside, just as Sans reached up and pulled his hoodie down. You noticed that his white pinpricks were gone and in their place was just black emptiness. The air in the room cackled with magic overload.

“Sans,” you said in warning. He was doing his intimidating act but you weren’t one bit scared of him. You reached out and placed a hand directly over his but he kept his malicious gaze at Professor Goodwin.

“My eyes must be deceiving me. A skeleton monster in person. The notorious Sans. I will be damned.”

“that’s just sans to you, buddy,” Sans said and the words came out clipped and cold.

You placed your hand on his collarbone instead. “Sans,” you insisted and he huffed out an annoyed breath before he slouched back and his pupils came back into existence.

“Fascinating,” Professor Goodwin noted and looked as pleased as when you’d answered one of his questions in class with a perspective he hadn’t heard before.

Goodwin finally stepped around his desk and Sans was instantly moving you behind himself, using his body to shield you.

“Fascinating,” the professor repeated and the word was staring to rub you the wrong way.

“Don’t goat him,” you warned and moved forward, so that you and Sans was side by side again. “He’s not the coldblooded killer that the media make him out to be but he is dangerous.”

“Oh, of that I have no doubt, miss. I know monsters are not to be underestimated, even if I have yet to meet one in person when it wasn’t drugged or restrained.”

The fact that he’d seen monsters who’d been captured made your stomach turn. It made sense that he’d probably been called into consult, just like Professor Jeffords but it felt wrong and it made you recall the way Sans had been strapped down and held against his will.

“They,” you corrected.

“Excuse me?”

“They, not it. If you don’t know the gender of someone then you should use they. They are just like people. They are not an _it_ ,” you said calmly and it seemed to provoke another internal thought in the professor who looked on the verge of commenting “fascinating” again.

“I see,” he said. “Nevertheless, I’m happy to make acquaintance with a monster who comes to see me voluntarily.”

The professor extended out his hand, undoubtedly for Sans to shake but Sans just snickered and pulled back slightly.

“no thanks, pal. human germs and stuff,” Sans said sarcastically. It was a bad excuse. He had no trouble touching you or Frisk.

“Well, I guess we should just get this… what should we call it… consultation on the road,” Goodwin said and sat back down.

“Great. Sans, lock the door,” you said and then turned your attention back to Goodwin, “and if you press the panic button to alert anyone of our presence then Sans will gladly rip off the offending finger.”

Sans seemed startled that you were making threats on his behalf but Goodwin didn’t seem all that affected, even if he also knew you well enough to know that you weren’t being serious.

“I would never. The two of you are by far the most interesting thing to walk through my door in a while. I wouldn’t break this up for something as trivial as calling the campus security. I have no doubt you would be able to handle yourself. The extent of your escape from the POCAM base isn’t public knowledge but I know some people. It was quite the mission,” Goodwin stated and sounded genuinely impressed.

Sans slumped down in the chair next to you with his usual laidback approach. However, you knew him well enough to see where his bones were a little too tense for him to be properly relaxing.

“So let me hear it. What brings you in here asking about souls? I would imagine monsters have a much better grasp on the topic than I, though not for lack of trying.”

“We need a fresh set of eyes on a case,” you began and started talking like you had rehearsed it. You didn’t want to let Goodwin know just the extent of Frisk’s abilities or what they might be able to do if they could access their magic again. But you gave him a brief overview of the case and if he had any experience in how to heal souls.

You knew he had written a paper on damaged souls that hadn’t yet been ready for publication or maybe the government was forbidding him from publishing.

“What a fascinating case,” he said by the end of your explanation.

“if you keep saying that word, i might just send a glowing bone your way,” Sans grumbled.

You were inclined to agree but you didn’t like Sans’ hostility when you had come here asking for help. It was odd to be sat across from your professor and have him listen to you like that. Before you had been kidnapped you had wondered if you’d ever get to work on a project with Professor Goodwin after you had graduated.

“Will you help us?” you asked.

“Well, that answer should be obvious to you,” Goodwin said. “This is the most intriguing research possibility I have ever been granted; the possibility of getting to see a soul in person and help restore someone after a trauma. This could be groundbreaking.”

“you’re not seeing frisk’s soul. no way. you get to consult and only ‘cause she trusts you.”

Goodwin let his analytical look rest on the both of you and you felt like you were under a microscope and any moment you would be dissected. It wasn’t really surprising that Sans stood up and slammed his hands on the table.

“don’t.”

“I know you don’t want me to say it but you are fascinating. This offer. The inter-species dynamic between the two of you.”

“Professor Goodwin,” you said because you didn’t feel like becoming his next research project and you had a feeling Sans’ patience was wearing really thin. “Would you be willing to come with us? We can take you to New New Home. Alphys mentioned that she would like to see you.”

“Alphys! Is she still kicking? How wonderful. I remember her from one of the first monster-human conferences. Brilliant mind, though easily distracted. And I will come with you but only under the agreement that I am allowed to publish anything I might learn.”

“sure,” Sans agreed without even consulting you.

You wanted to glare him into the ground but you didn’t want to appear like a split team. You did trust Professor Goodwin or you would never have sought out his help but Sans couldn’t just promise him that anything could be published. Goodwin might discover things that they didn’t want out in the world and now he could rightly ignore them if they requested that something shouldn’t be published.

Sans was probably agreeing because he thought that it didn’t matter because Frisk would be able to reset everything soon enough. But that wasn’t a way to live your life. You weren’t sure if Frisk would ever be able to do that and frankly, you weren’t sure if they should do it, even if they could.

“Oh and one more thing,” Goodwin asked as he got up and started sorting through the papers on his desk. “I was wondering if you could show me my soul. I have always been curious of the color but we don’t have any machines that can yet tell with any type of accuracy.”

“you do not want me to call out your soul unless you’re ready for a bad time,” Sans said and there was that surge of magic in the room. Sans was certainly in the mood for a fight and you agreed that it wasn’t the best idea to have Goodwin’s soul be subjected to that.

Goodwin looked a little beaten down about that. You recalled the rants he had gone on and on about in one of his lectures about how our souls – something that made us who we are – still were a complete mystery to us. If it wasn’t for the monsters we wouldn’t even know that we had souls in the first place.

“Sans,” you said in a gentle voice. He had said that he could read souls even inside of bodies, unless they were unusual such as your own. Sans caught onto what you meant.

“but it’s yellow, buddy. justice.”

Goodwin’s entire face lit up. “Are you sure? How can you tell? Does your magical eyes work like an x-ray machine? How…”

“Let’s wait with the questions, okay?” you suggested. “We need to get out of here before someone comes knocking on your door.”

Goodwin looked distracted but he nodded and agreed. “Indeed. How will we travel? By car?”

“Err, by Sans,” you said. “Teleportation is a real thing.”

Goodwin looked like his eyes might roll out of their sockets. “How does that work? How can a being travel through space and time? What…”

“i wish you’d shut up,” Sans said and reached over the desk to grab onto Professor Goodwin’s arm. The next moment they were both gone and you knew Sans must have take the professor to New New Home.

“Sans!” you hissed. He was probably just bored and wanted to move things along but Goodwin hadn’t had time to pack any of his materials. You started clearing up the desk and your eyes scanned the notes.

You were surprised to see your name written down on one of the notebooks. There wasn’t much on the same page, just a few question marks next to words like “monster sympathizer or clever scientist??” and “Jeffords’ assessment??”. You shoved the paper off the side of the desk and let it settle on the floor.

Clearly, Goodwin had checked up on you after what had happened at POCAM last week. He had mentioned the moniker that the media had given you already.

Sans came back into existence. He had no trouble finding a place he had been before so you could only reason it had taken a little while as he had probably ordered something to look after Professor Goodwin.

“That was a bit of a rash decision there, Sans,” you said as you tidied the last of the papers and gathered up the professor’s laptop.

“he was acting like alphys when she’s talking about surveillance or anime. i’ve learnt that it’s better to just get away from them when someone gets like that,” Sans said and leaned against the desk.

“You don’t like him.”

“i don’t like anyone. you must forgive me for being wary of government humans. we don’t have the best track record.”

“I am… or I was a government human too. You found me working at a research center,” you reasoned.

“took me a while to trust you too.”

You hummed in agreement. Sans had said he only really started seeing you as a person after your failed attempt at escaping from the hotel room. He had seen your vulnerability there and gotten an example of your moral compass.

“But now you trust me enough to bring a human I okayed into your home. I think this is all he’ll need,” you said to the pile of papers in your arms and the laptop. “But I don’t think it was a good idea to agree that he can publish anything he want. You should never give someone free rein like that.”

“it won’t matter.”

And there it was. None of this would matter because everything would just be reset and then all the actions in this timeline wouldn’t matter. Frisk would go back and fix the past so that the explosion never happened. You would never have met Frisk or the monsters. You wouldn’t even have started at university yet.

“I think you’re hinging too much on this reset thing, Sans. You have to live in the life you have.”

Sans seemed to catch on to the edge of your tone and his posture changed from annoyed to apologetic.

“it’s difficult when i was used to living so many different timelines,” Sans confessed and walked up to you, so you were eye to eye. “and we can’t get too attached to this disaster timeline. we need to find a better one.”

You wondered how you would be in this better timeline and it left a sick feeling in your stomach. You didn’t want to erase the last four years or more of your life but this office weren’t the place for this discussion.

And it wasn’t your decision to make. It was Frisk’s and you didn’t want to take that away from them. You had promised to help restore their magic and then it would be their decision. Frisk had always been the real player in this narrative.

You wanted to ask if Sans would remember this version of you, if time reset. Would he come looking for you and how would a new first meeting go between you if you had had a different life and no idea what you’d been through together?

“I don’t want to talk about this,” you said instead. “Let’s just go home. Please.”

Sans looked utterly confused but he opened his arms and you stepped into them while holding onto the papers and laptop.

The world shifted around you and the coldness of the void swept over you for the nanosecond it took to pass through it. You found yourself back in Alphys’ laboratory, feeling suddenly a little unsure about all of this.

But Goodwin was chatting to Alphys, albeit while a Royal Guard stood between them, undoubtedly to keep Alphys safe if Goodwin would try anything. As the professor spotted you, he excuses himself and sprinted over to take the notes and laptop from you with a quick word of thanks.

“Let’s get to work,” you said but even you could hear that your tone fell flat.

“doe, are you okay?” Sans asked.

The sound of his genuine concern didn’t make any of this feel any better. It didn’t matter how you felt, did it? You just needed to power through and find a way to help Frisk and after that it wouldn’t matter how you felt. You wouldn’t be here anymore. This world wouldn’t be here anymore.

“I’m fine,” you lied because you didn’t want to have this discussion with Sans. He was still set on finding a way to reset and you could tell that he wasn’t changing his mind on that. “Just tired. Come on, we need to discuss strategy with Alphys and Goodwin.”

Sans still looked concerned but he didn’t argue with you. He probably knew what you were thinking about and he didn’t want the discussion anymore than you did.

It was fine. You were used to burying yourself in work to avoid emotions that threatened to cripple you. You had done that with studying when your family had died. You knew how to keep your head down and grind and if that was what was required right now, then you would do it.

You couldn’t really blame the monsters for wanting to reset to a time before the war. It would get them back their King. It would take away so much pain and suffering. Objectively, it sounded like a wonderful thing.

But you weren’t sure it was a solution to the real problem at hand. But for now, you would shut your mouth and just focus on helping Frisk and enjoying whatever limited time you would have with the monsters you had begun to care for.

It did you no good to think of what the erasure of this timeline would mean.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New character! What do you think of Professor Goodwin? And some of the problems about resets are starting to cause a bit of a drift between our dear reader and Sans. It's the main point of conflict remaining and even with the trust and familiarity built up between them, they do not agree on this topic - Sans definitely wants to reset and the reader is a little more unsure. However, you also got a bit of fluff in this chapter and Sansy boy being whiny and affectionate and the kiss in the hallway of the university - totally cliché but I couldn't help myself. As always, I'd love any feedback.
> 
> Next update on will be in a week, on Sunday the 11th of February.


	28. An Underground Visit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They were still stuck on how to get Frisk's powers back and when Sans suggests a trip to the Underground to take a break, it doesn't take much convincing for her. And it might prove as a unique opportunity to learn more about the monsters' history.

You were feeling on edge and uncomfortable. It wasn’t really helping to focus on work like you had hoped. Maybe it was because of the “work” you were focusing on was the cause of all of your worries.

Some selfish part of you wondered if you should try to sabotage restoring Frisk’s abilities or at least try not to actively help. No one would probably blame you if you stepped back from it.

Well, no one other than yourself. You’d seen what Frisk had gone through and you had even seen their damaged soul floating over Sans’ palm. You could still recall the bright red light – dulled by the black marks that had formed on it.

It had felt different than when you’d seen your own soul, even with its shatter lines. Those lines had glowed when Sans had neared and you had felt powerful when looking at them. Perhaps, you had been filled with determination.

But seeing Frisk’s soul had left you feeling hopeless, which made sense due to the name of the spots. You wanted to make it better. You wanted to take that fear away from Frisk. The most determined human perhaps in the history of the world had almost lost hope. Three years had been too long for living on hope alone.

It had left scars.

“what are you thinking about?” Sans asked as he slid into the chair next to yours. You were sat at the conference table, looking over your notes and the books Sans had given you on souls but you hadn’t been paying much attention to the materials in front of you.

You hadn’t made much progress since you picked up Professor Goodwin yesterday. Other than the fact Alphys had warmed up to him. You had to admit that was a lovely change because it made her slightly more human-friendly in general. However, either Undyne or one of the Royal Guards was always present when Professor Goodwin was in the laboratory. You had a feeling that might have been more on Sans’ insistence than Alphys’.

“Frisk,” you said honestly to answer Sans’ question. “I’m… I don’t know, Sans. It’s just… we’re still stuck. All that Professor Goodwin has come up with so far is only things that we have already tried. I might have oversold him a bit.”

“the human is smart but so are you, doe. we didn’t need another human in the room.”

You chuckled and found yourself leaning over to place your head on Sans’ bony shoulder. You’d fallen asleep on the sofa yesterday by accident because you were so tired. You woke up there too. Sans could probably sense that something had been bothering you ever since you came back with Goodwin, even if he hadn’t mentioned it. He seemed to breathe a little lighter as you rested your head on his shoulder. It was a little uncomfortable but you kept it there anyway.

“I’m not as smart as he is. He’s got years of experience. I’m a novice and that’s okay. I don’t mean it in terms of putting myself down but you should never compare yourself to the people at the top. You should work out how to get there instead.”

“well, all the ideas he came up with so far are the same as ours. and experience doesn’t always mean that they’re better. don’t sell yourself short. we will figure out how to help frisk and set the world right again.”

There it was again. Setting the world right again. A reset. You flinched and then slowly retreated from how you’d leaned on Sans. You felt tired all over. You didn’t know what to say, so you just hummed.

“hey, do you want to get out of here for a few hours?” Sans asked unprompted and you turned to him with a frown on your face.

“What do you mean?”

“undyne and alphys had a date night a few days ago. we can take a long lunch,” Sans said and got out of his seat and held out his hand.

You should stay here and work but to be honest your brain wasn’t really working at the moment. It was like you couldn’t focus at all. It was difficult to give this your all when you weren’t sure you even wanted to be confronted with the consequences if you succeeded. Maybe a break was exactly what you needed.

“What do you want to do? Go to Grillby’s?” you asked as you took his hand and let him pull you to your feet.

“i was thinking of the underground but if you want i can show you the original grillby’s? it’s still open, he just expanded to the one up here.”

You had been so focused on Frisk that you had actually forgotten about Sans’ promise to show you around the Underground. You had always wondered if it was something you would get to see in your lifetime and here Sans stood and offered to show you around. A nagging feeling in your gut told you that this wouldn’t matter anyway because if you restored Frisk’s powers then nothing you did or had done for the last four or five years would matter. But that was no way to live your life, so you pushed away those thoughts and nodded enthusiastically.

“I’d love that, if you think we can excuse ourselves,” you said and looked to where Alphys and Professor Goodwin was looking over notes while Undyne was sat at on the table, swinging her legs while cleaning her sharp teeth with a string of floss. It looked rather intimidating and you had no doubt it was to show Professor Goodwin to keep his hands off her precious Alphys, just without saying it with words.

It was rather adorable.

Frisk was on standby, at home with Toriel and Mont, until you needed them. There was no need for the teenager to sit beside you and twiddle their thumbs. So really, you could leave without too much hassle.

“Let’s d-” you started to say and squeezed Sans’ hand. He apparently took that as an invitation because the next moment the world was shifting around you. He needed to stop springing these shortcuts on you.

The surprise made you lean forward and Sans protectively wrapped his arms around you. When the world stopped spinning you looked up at him and his sheepish grin told you that he knew exactly what he had been doing.

“Where was the warning this time, Sans?” you asked, but your voice was light and teasing.

It was a rather innocent play to move you like that and while you didn’t appreciate the surprise, it was harmless.

Huh. You weren’t quite sure at what point you had started regarding Sans and his extremely powerful magic at harmless. You had been terrified off him before. You had nightmare that he might strangle you. But then you had started to listen to what he was actually saying. You had started getting to know him and he wasn’t the scary monster he wanted everyone to think he was.

But he wasn’t objectively harmless and it might be an unwise word to attach to him, even if you had been making a habit of it as of late.

“i forgot,” Sans replied but he still wasn’t stepping back or breaking your embrace.

You looked around and realized you were near the core where you had driven through a week ago upon returning to this place after the whole POCAM ordeal. This place looked magical and the fact that all of this had existed for so long without any humans knowing about it was even more incredible.

“You have to show me _everything_!” you exclaimed and took his hand and dragged him forward. His gait was always so sluggish and lazy but right now he had to step up his game to keep up with you. He also had to endure all of your questions.

It was in the core that a lot of the humans lived as part of their training course after they had surrendered. A few of them still looked a little on edge as they spotted Sans but it was probably from the rumours that he was a mass-murder capable of ending your life in an instance just by looking at you.

Again, he was not harmless, even if he felt that way to you sometimes.

Hotland was mostly uninhabited, except from a few monsters that had decided to stay here. It was hot and made you feel flustered. All the pipes releasing the hot air probably didn’t help but you couldn’t help but admire the feat of engineering it must have taken to construct this place. You also got to briefly peek inside of the Lab, which was more old-school than the laboratory Alphys had above ground but still very interesting. Sans also pointed out one of his sentry stations and recalled a story of how he had stacked hotdog after hotdog upon Frisk’s head.

“the kid just kept asking for more hotdogs, even with no more place in their inventory. so i put it on their head as a joke. then they asked for one more and i balanced it on top of the one already resting on frisk’s head. it kept going like that for a while until the ‘dogs eventually toppled. my boss was not happy with that but it was worth it to see that beautiful smile on frisk’s face,” Sans explained.

“That sounds adorable,” you said and put your arm around his even in this heat.

“yeah, i suppose. it was during the good run. i would never have imagined a kid who smiled so innocently would be capable of so much hurt.”

You had tried to get Sans to explain what he meant but he had just shut down and dragged you along.

There was something calming about Waterfalls. It might just be the soothing reliable sound of water gushing, always moving along and never stopping. It could also be because it was a nice change from the clammy air in Hotland.

You got to see the burnt down ruins of Undyne’s old house as well as Napstablook and Mettaton’s houses, which stood side by side, matching in everything except the color. It was odd to think that the monsters had spent most of their lives here. You also got to stop by Temmie Village, where they Temmies had stayed put even as the barrier fell. They were utterly adorable monsters, even if they weren’t the most expressive. When Sans introduced you to the Echo Flowers, you almost lost your mind.

“A flower can record and store bits of conversation? That’s incredible, how do we not know about this?” you asked.

“oh a flower can do much more than that,” Sans said and frowned. “but they’re pretty cool. just don’t say anything secret near them. they’re tattletales.”

You pondered it for a moment. This was a chance for you to get back at Sans.

“Sans is much softer and kinder than people think,” you said and aimed it at the flower. Obediently, it repeated the phrase back to you when you let your fingers stroke over the petals.

Sans’ cheekbones seemed to glow cerulean blue, which was noticeable even in the blue twinge of this room.

“you’re ridiculous, doe,” Sans muttered and there was something wrecked about the way he said it.

You just laughed at how embarrassed he looked. You laughter came out loud and without intention so you were still smiling so wide after you managed to reel it in. Thankfully, Sans didn’t look offended. He looked intrigued.

He even activated the flower to hear your laugh played back to you. You snorted and smacked his hands away before he made it play for a second time and you dragged him onwards on the tour.

By the time you made it to Snowdin, you were feeling both a bit tired and hungry. Sans took you straight to Grillby’s where you happily stuffed your face with the magic-infused food. It tasted slightly different down here compared to topside and this place was significantly smaller than the restaurant you had been to in New New Home.

It was remarkably how easy it was for you to forget that this whole world existed underground. There was a lot of space up to the celling of the cave and it had little glittery stones up there that sort of resembles stars, even if it could never beat the real thing. There was also a lot of light around and you wondered if that was all because of the magic because there didn’t seem to be a need for a lot of artificial light.

You were so excited about all of the things you were learning about the Underground and Sans was patiently answering your questions at every turn. If you had wanted to turn against the monsters now, you would practically be able to restore all the information you deleted and then add some. But after everything that had happened over the past two months, you knew you could never turn your back on the monsters.

They had become too much of a family to you and you couldn’t turn over their secrets now. You might have been able to do that in the beginning but you were way past the point of no return.

Grillby’s still smelled the same though and Sans had chugged back ketchup in the same fashion. It was pleasantly warm inside but as soon as you stepped outside the restaurant the chill went through you. This was another reason Sans should have warned you so that you could have grabbed a coat he had made you a shortcut down here. Although it would have been irritating to drag around a heavy winter coat through Hotland, where you’d been happy to only wear a shirt. The weather down here in the Underground was rather impractical when you moved through the different areas.

You put your arms around yourself and rubbed your hands on your shoulders in the hopes that could provide some warmth. Sans let out a breathy chuckle before he moved to hug you from behind. You instantly felt a little warmer, both physically and in your heart.

“You’re a skeleton furnace, I swear,” you said and pressed your back entirely against Sans. “How did Frisk manage down here in just a T-shirt?”

You could feel Sans shrug against you. “i’m not sure. But the kid never complained or even looked cold.”

“Maybe it was because of their magic,” you pondered. “It seems like that’s what makes you feel so warm. I am clearly not magical because I’m freezing like hell.”

“some would say the underground crawling with monsters is hell,” Sans joked.

You turned around in Sans embrace so you were brought face to face. “You’re not a monster.”

Sans’ raised an amused brow bone at your words.

“Well, technically you are. Okay, I get it. But you know what I mean. You’re not some hideous and threatening beast. Granted, you might be what someone would go as on Halloween but you’re not a monster in the context other humans might think.”

Sans looked unsure how to respond. “you seem to forget my tricks can be pretty scary.”

“But you should get treats instead of having to do tricks. Come on, we can’t just stand here outside of Grillby’s. Even with my personal heater, I’m quite chilly.”

“we could get you a jacket from me and pap’s old house. it’s just a little back that way.”

There was no way you were saying no to actually getting a glimpse into Sans and Papyrus’ old home. It turned out you had actually walked past it as Sans had hurried you towards Grillby’s and now you wondered if it had been on purpose that Sans had skipped by his old house.

The house down here was smaller than the one on the surface but not by much. The kitchen was tiny though and it had an incredibly tall sink you weren’t sure anyone would be able to use. There were a few wayward socks lying around the floor and none of them matched. You could see stairs leading upstairs to a platform with two doors, which was overlooking the living room.

It seemed cozy and it smelled like the topside home where you had been a guest for a month or more now.

“This is nice,” you said as you looked around.

Sans pulled a coat from behind the door and offered it to you. It was the same blue like Sans’ hoodie and it had fluff around the edge of the hood. It felt heavy and warm.

“Why did you buy a coat for yourself when you don’t feel the cold?” you asked Sans.

“how did you know it was mine?”

You gestured between the coat and the hoodie Sans was still wearing. “You fashion sense is somewhat limited, my friend. I’m guessing your favorite color is blue?”

“nah.”

That threw you for a loop. You had assumed because of the color of his hoodie as well as the color of his attacks. You had secretly begun to like that specific shade of blue quite a lot lately.

“What is it then?”

“orange-yellow,” Sans said and he didn’t look like he wanted elaborate despite saying two colors at the same time. You tried to wrack your brain why that might be his favorite color and it clicked.

“Like a sunrise, right?”

Sans blinked rapidly a couple of times. He didn’t need to say it for you to know that you had hit bullseye and he was wondering how.

“You remember our talk out in the garden when you’d first invited me into your home? You spoke very poetically about the stars and what a privilege it was to be able to see the real sky after having been trapped underground for so long. I figured it might be the same with the sunrise.”

“once we first crossed the barrier the sun was setting and those colors were the most beautiful thing i had ever seen. it meant that we really got out this time. we were free from the prison humans had condemned us to.”

You hadn’t really considered the Underground a prison but of course, that had been what it was. Humans had trapped monsters down here out of fear or ignorance. The monsters had built lives down here but it hadn’t been by choice. It had been a way to survive in the undoubtedly cold cave they had been tossed down into.

“I’ve been so inconsiderate,” you said out loud as you realized. You’d been so caught up in all the new stuff you were learning and seeing that you had completely overlooked a vital part. “You don’t like being down here, do you?

Sans looked a bit torn. “i don’t, no. but not because of the whole prison thing. the void and the underground were the only homes i’ve ever known. i didn’t know why everyone was obsessed with getting to the surface until i saw that sunset. but… things work differently down here. time here isn’t always linear and when frisk showed up that complicated things further.”

You wanted to hear this story but you could tell that Sans was reluctant to tell it. It might even help you gain a better understanding of Frisk and perhaps that could even lead to some revelation about how to get their powers back.

“Should I make us some tea?” you asked, not even sure the tiny kitchen had a kettle or tea bags. “We can sit on the sofa and you can tell me, if you want to. I think it would help me better understand Frisk and maybe even you.”

“i’m a pretty straight-forward guy,” Sans said but the humorous undertones fell flat.

“You’re a mystery, Sans, and you don’t let people in. They have to come up to you and pry your ribcage apart to get even a basic understanding of what you are thinking.”

“people don’t need to know things that’ll hurt them.”

“Sometimes, they do. And you might not always be able to make an objective decision on information, especially if it’s something that will influence people’s lives,” you said and tugged him along until you reached the sofa where he hesitantly sat down next to you. Tea might have been part of your nightly talks but it wasn’t a necessity, you hoped.

“i don’t want people to know about the alternate timelines. that’s all there was since frisk came down here. frisk messed around with time, went back and forth. they were a curious kid and down here it was so easy for them to become drunk on power. when you have the ability to just go back and restart, your actions become more reckless. you can always change it back if something happens that you don’t like, right? reset, start over. frisk was curious, wanted to know more about all of their new friends but some things would never be shared unless in brutal circumstances.”

You hadn’t realized that you were holding your breath until Sans took a pause to assess your reaction. You tried to breathe out and look calm but there was a sinister tone to Sans’ voice. You had only every heard the skeleton speak of Frisk with fondness but now it was like Sans was talking about a completely different person.

“I’m okay, Sans. Please continue.”

“you can’t let this change how you see frisk. they’re different now. everything they did in alternate timelines down here is fuzzy for them. they’re good now. a true pacifist.”

You couldn’t really promise that to Sans but you knew he wouldn’t go on unless you did. Whatever had happened with Frisk down here, Sans clearly adored the human teenager now and you knew better than to get between the two of them. You would just have to compartmentalize like Sans apparently did.

“Okay,” you promised.

Sans sighed and it looked like he gathered strength to tell the next part of the story.

“frisk was too curious. most humans are, i suppose. you get whims that you know are wrong but you get the urge to do them anyway. and when you’ve lost your filter on consequences because you realized you could just set back time, then it probably doesn’t seem so bad to give into those whims. you can always go back. except, taking someone’s life isn’t something meaningless, even if you go back and undo it. it corrupts you. it makes it difficult to stop. it leaves you vulnerable to those who seek power. maybe you have to keep going to the end of the road, just to see what happens.”

Your jaw was tensed and you had taken Sans’ hands in yours as he was talking. He never stated it outright but it was easy enough to understand from Sans’ vague statements. Frisk had killed someone and then reset it. But then they had tried again and this time, they had kept going.

“You?” you asked, even if you really didn’t want to know the answer. You already tried to keep yourself from seeing Frisk covered in the dust of slayed monsters. Sans was right, it wasn’t the sweet yet determined teenager that you had come to know. Yet, it had been, hadn’t it? This was the exact reason someone shouldn’t be messing with time like that.

“i put up quite a fight. killed the human many times but it was always a pointless fight for me. with those levels of determination, i would eventually be defeated but i had to show them a bad time after what they did to poor papyrus and our other friends.”

Your throat felt tight and you moved forward to practically crawl onto Sans’ lap. His arms went around you immediately and he held you, even if he was the one who should be held. It wasn’t surprising why he had night terrors. He had watched his brother and friends get murdered by someone he had considered a friend.

“And you remember everything? Only you?”

“i think it’s all the travel through the void. it did something to my feeling of time and space. i recall everything while the other monsters forget. frisk knew, while down here but as soon as the sun shined on their face, the alternate timelines they had gone through seemed to fade for them. they only recall this one.”

“And that’s what you’re talking about when you say that sometimes it’s best to keep things from people?”

“i will not tell frisk that they were killed every single monster in the underground. if they is lucky enough not to remember that, it should be considered a blessing.”

Sans said it stubbornly and you knew you wouldn’t be able to change his mind, at least not right now. Part of you felt like Frisk was entitled to know but on the other hand, you could understand why Sans didn’t want them to have knowledge of the type of person that they had been.

“That’s why you told Frisk no time manipulation on the surface,” you said as you put two and two together from what Sans had just told you know and what Frisk had insisted that you be told in the laboratory a couple of days ago.

“that was until this turned out to be a bad timeline. we need a do-over so we can find the good one.”

You wondered how many attempts that would take. Would just one time jump be enough? A dozen? Would Frisk become corrupt again? High on power like what had happened down here?

“i don’t want to fight about it, please,” Sans muttered and moved you sideways until you were laying cuddled up on the sofa. The plea in his voice broke your heart but you weren’t surprised that he was sensing you skepticism. Sans had always been able to read you well, especially ever since he had your soul out. It had been a terrifying experience, looking back. In the moment, you had just been excited to see your soul color and you hadn’t really known what you were agreeing to.

Sans still had walls up. You couldn’t really take it personally when he even shut out his brother and his best friends in the same manner but you wanted to see his real vulnerability.

“Sans?” you asked and looked up to find that he had closed his eye sockets. He looked peaceful.

“hm?”

“Why did you not want to show me this place? Would we even have come here if not for the coat?” you asked.

It was like the room filled with magic tension for a brief moment, like Sans was losing control of it momentarily as he tensed at your words.

“this place… this old home… i would wake up here when frisk reset. it’s never been the same since. i have had too many breakdowns in here. both before and after someone died, because i knew it was coming. i suppose i didn’t want to show you that part of my past,” Sans said and let out a bark of a laugh. “instead you just convinced me to tell you everything.”

Sans nuzzled closer to you and you leaned down to place a kiss on his temple. He hummed and hugged you a little closer.

“i killed frisk. again and again. you shouldn’t let me this close to you.”

“Nonsense,” you said and stroked his spine through his hoodie. “If Frisk gets a clean slate, so do you.”

“i’ve killed in the war topside too.”

“I know,” you said. “But only when you had to, right?”

“i never spill innocent blood.”

You had been fairly sure of that but it was very comforting to have it confirmed. Sans was warm and comfortable in your arms and you just let yourself relax, which obviously caused your mind to wander.

“Sans?” you asked and wondered if this was the right time to bring it up. But you had wondered about it for a while and Sans seemed more honest and open than ever. He felt sturdy in your arms, hugged as close to you as he possible could. “Do you think… could I see your soul?”

It was obviously not the right thing to ask because Sans shut up, the room crackled with magic and some bones were even conjured into existence around you. As he had sat up, he had accidentally pushed you away and you landed on your ass next to the sofa.

Sans usually took on a terrifying grin when wielding magic but right now he looked like the scared one, even if it quickly morphed into concern. The bones disappeared but the sense of magic was still palpable in the air.

“sorry,” he said and reached out a hand to help you but then he pulled it back just as rapidly as he had offered it. You felt very confused but you realized you must have overstepped some boundary. Frisk had been very surprised when they had learnt that Sans had seen your soul out and you were learning that souls were something very private.

“No, I should be the one apologizing,” you said and reached out and grabbed hold of Sans’ bony fingers. You knew why he had retreated his hand, he often expected you to be scared of him anew whenever he used magic. But you weren’t scared of him; you were only scared of hurting him or his feelings.

“no, it’s just… monster souls are different than human’s. they can’t be outside of their bodies for more than a moment before splintering.”

“Oh. I didn’t know, Sans.”

“it’s fine. and actually, if you’re looking for factual information, i guess monster souls can be outside of their bodies but only under one circumstance. when they immediately meet another soul and merge to create a soul shard,” Sans said.

A monster baby. You remembered Sans saying that monsters were born from the shard that their parents’ created. Suddenly, the light blue dusting of a blush on Sans’ cheeks also made sense.

“I really didn’t mean anything by it,” you rushed to say but it was difficult to explain. “I just…”

"what?” Sans asked when you didn’t finish your sentence and he sounding more curious than embarrassed now.

“I was just thinking of how things changed when you saw my soul. How I started to trust you in a different way. I thought it might be the same for you, if the roles were reversed.”

Sans looked speechless, which wasn’t a common look on him. He couldn’t even crack a joke to relieve the tension. So you were the one who let out a little giggle and leaned forward to press a kiss to his teeth to reassure him.

“We’re okay, Sans. Don’t worry about it. But come on. We must have been down here for hours, it’s time we return to work.”

Sans nodded and you both got on your feet. You walked into the hug that Sans offered but unlike before he didn’t shortcut you straight away. He just held you in his arms while you could feel his eyes scanning around the living room that had been his home for who knew how long. He seemed deep in thought.

You had a nagging feeling Sans still hadn’t told you everything about his soul but you couldn’t press him anymore today. He had finally opened up about his life in the Underground and the monsters’ past with Frisk and frankly, it turned out to be the exact thing that you needed.

As you felt Sans create a shortcut and move you through the void, you got an idea how to potentially help Frisk’s powers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have been waiting ages for the reader to properly see the Underground! Did you like it? I quite like how this chapter turned out and I'm so happy that Sans is finally opening up about what went on with Frisk while in the Underground. I got to put a bit of my own interpretation of the game narrative in here, which is so cool. Also, that little hotdog story was so funny to incorporate. There's so many little details from the game in this chapter and it makes me want to rewatch a playthrough of it. Sans is opening up but he still doesn't want to talk about resets, but he can't push it off forever. As always, feedback is appreciated. 
> 
> And!! Someone made art for this story! Aslea in the comments and [@ayllow](https://ayllow.tumblr.com) on tumblr made [this gorgeous piece of art](https://ayllow.tumblr.com/post/170760699030/this-a-scene-from-23rd-chapter-of-you-can) from the scene going through the void in chapter 23. Thank you so much, Aslea!
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday the 18th of February 2018. Usual upload time is 8 PM CET.


	29. An Atmosphere Recreation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She finally had a new idea of how to get Frisk's powers back and after a day of work, it was time to test out their first viable idea. However, they still had not found a way to address the spots of hopelessness and that might be a grave mistake.

“Sans,” you said in a loud voice and grabbed onto his hoodie and shook him a little as you reappeared in the laboratory. You had heard a shuffle behind you and Alphys squealing, so you had probably surprised the people by reappearing so rapidly or perhaps it was your raised voice.

“what? are you okay? what happened?” Sans asked, worry clear in his tone as he placed his hands on either side of your face and he looked like he thought he could figure out what was bothering you by looking you in the eye. You pulled your hands up over his and took then off your face with a smile.

“I’m fine,” you assured him. “But I had an idea. You said Frisk forgot about alternate timelines as soon as our sun shone on their face. They had never been able to manipulate time before falling into the Underground and they hadn’t tried since. But what if that’s the key? The sun… or maybe there’s just something about the atmosphere in the Underground that activates strong magic like that.”

“you think they can only reset while in the underground?” Sans asked.

As he spoke, Alphys, Undyne and Professor Goodwin came up to you and the two scientists looked intrigued, while Undyne just looked like you were spurting nonsense.

“S-she might have a p-point,” Alphys argued.

“no,” Sans said and you didn’t need to look up at him to know that his pupils would have disappeared and his eye socket be black. You could hear it just by the change of his tone.

“Sans, i-if…”

“that’s no good,” Sans interrupted before Alphys could even say anything. “frisk need to be up here to reset what happened here. the underground is like its own little world. we don’t know what’ll happen if they reset while down there. it might trap us all again,” Sans added somberly.

You and Sans were still standing close together and you felt how the shiver went through his body. He was worried about being trapped there again but not just by the barrier. He was worried of being trapped in Frisk’s endless alternate universes. You pulled him into a hug.

“I g-guess,” Alphys said and frowned.

“Don’t give up that easily, honey!” Undyne said and put an arm around her partner. “You’re the smartest monster I know with these three at your aid, I’m sure you can figure something out. We do not give up.”

“we could recreate it,” Sans suggested.

Alphys’ eyes lit up. “Yes! We t-trap air from down there, soil, f-flowers, whatever else we might need. We make a little p-piece of the Underground up here. And you, Professor Goodwin, you have the e-equipment you mentioned. It c-could be strapped to F-Frisk to monitor them.”

“Brilliant,” Professor Goodwin agreed.

The monster and professor started talking about logistics and you took a little moment to relish in how easily the two of them conversed. Alphys had also come up to talk to you and taken your idea seriously. She had come a long way since you had first walked into the laboratory and you had been cuffed to silence.

You listened intensely and joined in with the discussion. This might actually work. No one even wanted to entertain the idea of checking Frisk’s powers while Underground. The other monsters might not remember the alternate timelines like Sans did but they knew probably remembered that no one should mess powerful magic while down there unless you were ready to face the consequences.

Alphys and Goodwin started writing a list of material they would needed to build this little chamber of the Underground, while Sans used a short-cut to pick up Frisk first and then Toriel. Both got cued in on the plan and Papyrus showed up moments later as he had finished the training of the human who had surrendered, which he had taken over from Undyne while she was watching Professor Goodwin.

You felt more hopeful now. Frisk had thought it was a good idea as well and they had smiled so brightly at the progress of finally being able to help. As they smiled, they had looked up at Toriel and reached out to take her claw.

Something passed between them non-verbally and you wondered if it was a promise to bring back Toriel’s late husband. Your throat felt a little tight and you wondered how you would react if you might be able to stop the car accident that had killed your family. For a long time, you had wished that you could turn back time and prevent them from driving off on that fateful day but over the years you had made your peace with it.

But Toriel had only been out of her coma for less than half a year. She was still a grieving widow, even if they hadn’t been properly together at the time of the bombing. According to Sans, they were beginning to move back towards forgiveness, until their lives had been ripped apart.

It felt good to be working with an objective again, even if you worried that it might not work out. It had been frustrating to try and come up with idea after idea that never made it into reality because it was flawed in one way or another. The whole monster group wanted to believe that this one would work. The Royal Guards as well as Dogamy and Dogressa had been sent out to look for the growing lists of materials, which included some special kind of glass from Alphys’ old lap and different soil samples from all of the Underground. The chamber to emulate the atmosphere from the Underground was taking shape rapidly.

In a quiet moment, Professor Goodwin pulled you aside. He had caught you by the coffee machine and asked if he could have a moment of your time. You had hesitated before nodding. It felt weird to have him here. He had been cued in on what you were trying to achieve and he had been in awe of the scientific implications of altering time.

But you hadn’t really considered how he might feel about it as a person rather than a scientist.

“Do you believe that a human teenager can truly turn back time?” Goodwin asked as you found a secluded corner. Sans had noticed the two of you as he was walking past but you had just smiling reassuringly to let him know not to worry.

“Yeah, I do,” you said and took a sip of your tea. “I haven’t seen proof but I trust Sans’ words and Frisk’s for that matter.”

“And you approve of it?” the professor asked.

You shrugged and bit into your lower lip while you tried to hide whatever telling expression was on your face. It didn’t seem to deter Professor Goodwin.

“You do not approve,” he said and hummed in contemplation while he adjusted his glasses. “Or at the very least, you’re torn.”

“I assume you do approve based on your enthusiasm,” you noted, instead of commenting on how the professor had seen right through you.

“It would be a fantastic scientific discovery and I would never turn away from such an opportunity, even if I am worried what kind of ripple effect this might have. Being part of this team is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Additionally, I am not about to publicly call into question the decision of the monsters. We must remember who we are dealing with.”

Something about the last part of his sentence rubbed you the wrong way and you clutched onto your mug. “They are people, Professor Goodwin. They will not behead you if you oppose them. They are of sound mind and reasonable.”

“Do you truly believe that they are _exactly_ like us? You do not think that we are similar but the monsters still have different capabilities? I have been studying them for a while, mind you, and I think I can still find differences. Although, I must say it is fascinating to be able to observe them in their natural habitat.”

You knew the professor wasn’t trying to piss you off or necessarily compare the monsters to animal test subjects but the way he spoke still set your teeth on edge. He was behaving like he was conducting ethnographic research but this was the monsters’ real lives and none of them had signed up to be test subjects.

“This is their life, not their natural habitat. They are as complex as people and I’ll not deny monsters might have different facets than we do but that does not inherently make them more dangerous.”

“Oh, but it does,” Goodwin argued. “And I do not mean it as disrespect at all. But they are able to do things that humans cannot. It would be like humans had a gun attached to their wrist at all times. Think how many people would get hurt if that was the case. The monsters are constantly weaponized. And if you say they behave just like us, then having the possibility to create harm so easily makes them more dangerous.”

There wasn’t a whole lot you could say to that kind of logic. Yes, the monsters had magic, which made it easier for them to hurt people, and as an effect they would have to keep themselves in check better than humans.

“But they grow up with their powers. They learn to control them. One could compare them to people born into extreme privilege who would also have the possible to destroy others, if they lost sight of themselves. With us, wealth and privilege can be as dangerous as magic can be for monsters.”

“Fascinating,” Professor Goodwin muttered and you knew you had managed to twist his perspective around. For a little moment, it felt like you were back in his class, fascinated with monsters but without having ever met any of them. It was a simpler time and nostalgia might have filled your chest but you did not want to go back. You had grown too much since to give up on that progress.

“Don’t let Sans hear you say that word,” you said with a little smile.

“You are truly not scared of Sans the skeleton are you?”

You hadn’t been anticipating that question at all and you almost choked on your tea.

“What?”

“Excuse my forwardness, but he is one of the strongest monsters known to man. I felt slightly terrified while being teleported here and I still keep my distance from him but you… the two of you appear quite close. You do not worry for his magic?”

You coughed and cleared your throat. “Sans would never do anything to hurt me. We’ve been doing this dance for a while. You must know he was the one who kidnapped me. There has been so many times where he could have hurt me or almost did but he never went through with it. By now, I know that he would never do that to me. No matter how powerful and scary he might be, he has morals and integrity.”

“You are quite extraordinary, miss. I noticed you in my class but clearly I had no idea just what I was looking at. You are a force to be reckoned with.”

You weren’t sure what he meant but Sans called for you and you excused yourself. You hadn’t become any wiser regarding Professor Goodwin’s personal interest but judging by his enthusiasm for the project, he thought manipulating time was a splendid idea.

Surprisingly, it took just one day to finish the chamber, even if it was past midnight by the time you finished. Some of the team had wanted to press on and have Frisk enter it and access their abilities but Toriel had put her clove down.

Frisk had been helping out at the laboratory all day and they needed rest, as did the rest of them, she added lovingly. Papyrus had been hanging out, helping around with odd jobs all day too and he was headed straight to bed when you made it back to the skeleton brothers’ home.

You still felt too restless to sleep. Tomorrow, Frisk might be able to turn back time and all that had passed in the past four years would be deleted. Everything you had learned. How much you had grown. All the people you had gotten to know.

“hey,” Sans said and plunked down on the sofa next to you and put an arm around your shoulder. You snuggled closer to his warmth and rested your head on his collarbone.

“I’m worried about tomorrow,” you confessed.

Sans just hummed to show that he was listening but he didn’t say anything. Probably to make you continue speaking to fill the silence.

You weren’t sure if you wanted to. There was still a lot of “ifs”. This whole thing might not work. Even if Frisk was in an Underground atmosphere, their soul still bore spots of hopelessness and so far you had found no way to fix those.

But even if it by some miracle everything worked, you still didn’t know if you could talk to Sans about this. He was dead-set on a reset. You wondered if he would even hear you out if you tried to properly explain why you feared what would happen if Frisk did set back time. It felt safer just to push it aside, like before, and cuddle up to the skeleton. You might be losing everything tomorrow.

“I’m scared.”

“it’ll be okay.”

“You don’t know that, Sans.”

“it has to be.”

There was no room for discussion on this topic. Sans had been fairly open-minded about everything else but resetting was a sensitive topic to him and you understood why. He wanted to go back and fix where he felt like he had failed. He wanted to stop the people he loved from walking into a meeting that would kill or cripple them. Maybe he would have tried to take more people through a shortcut if he knew that Frisk couldn’t just reset to save everyone.

Sans would never have left Papyrus there if he didn’t think Frisk could just rewind and get him out of there unscathed.

You went up to bed with Sans that night too, even if you weren’t sure if it was a good idea. But his bones felt warm and comfortable and familiar by now and you wanted the reassurance it brought to be in his embrace. As you fell asleep, he was playing with your hair mindlessly and you felt safe and comforted.

There were no nightmares that he would be choking you to death. On the verge of sleep, you reached up and pressed your lips to his teeth as your hands closed around his shoulder blades.

He whispered your name; your real name and you heard the rejection even behind his gentle tone. You weren’t even sure what you were trying to initiate but Sans was right. Whatever this between you was, this was not the way to go about it. You were still upset and afraid of what might happen tomorrow.

The following morning, you sat at the kitchen table in just your nightshirt and underwear. You had slipped out of the bed early to go over the checklist for the chamber to make sure you had done everything you could think of.

You still had question marks next to the spots of hopelessness listed as an issue to be addressed. Obviously, you didn’t know it that would have any effect at all. Frisk’s soul had still been brilliantly red in the other places but you had a sinking feeling that you were making a mistake to gloss over those spots, even if you, Sans and Alphys were to only ones who even knew they existed. Professor Goodwin had been told a glossed over version but he hadn’t been properly let into the loop.

Sans had told Alphys later but Frisk had made him and you promise not to say anything to Toriel or anyone else. They didn’t want to upset their adoptive mother. It clearly hadn’t sat well with Sans but so far as you knew, he had respected Frisk’s wishes.

You felt a slight tingle of magic in the air and a moment later, a hoodie was dropped around your bare shoulders. Instantly, you felt better and warmer but before that you hadn’t even noticed that you were getting cold.

You looked behind to find Sans standing there with a unsure expression.

“Thanks, Sans,” you said and reached out to squeeze his hand. “I was cold.”

“it’s no skin off my back,” Sans joked.

“IT’S TOO EARLY FOR PUNS, SANS! AND WOWIE, I’M SO EXCTIED TO SEE THAT MACHINE OF YOURS AT WORK. MIND YOU, IT IS NO GLORIOUS PUZZLE BUT I DO HOPE IT WILL MAKE FRISK FEEL BETTER,” Papyrus said as he came down the stairs, in his usual cape get-up and started cooking eggs almost immediately.

You smiled and let yourself take in the domestic bliss for a moment, sat in Sans’ hoodie with Papyrus pottering around the stove. It had been a long time since you had lived with someone like this. This house and these two skeletons had begun to feel like family at some point and you weren’t quite sure when that had happened.

It was with heavy steps that you approached the laboratory after breakfast and getting dressed. It was like your body was trying to delay it as much as possible, as if that would change anything at all. You would test out the machine and if it worked then Frisk would reset.

You were fairly sure that Frisk wouldn’t just do it immediately and that you would hopefully get a chance to say goodbye to people.

Mettaton had been spending most of his time, after Alphys had recalibrated him, talking to the humans residing in New New Home after they had surrendered. He had already gotten himself a little fan group and you were surprised to find him present in the laboratory as you walked in.

“Good morning, my darlings. Don’t look so gloom. This is a happy day!” Mettaton said and shot glitter out of a canon.

“YOU ARE MAKING A BIG MESS!” Papyrus complained and tried to catch some of the glitter with his hands before it made it to the ground.

“Oh, g-good! Sans and Doe, w-we just need to check the c-chamber one more t-time,” Alphys called out and said.

“I’m on it,” you said and lifted the notebook with the checklist.

Everything seemed to be perfectly in order. There had been gathered soil from every region of the Underground. You recognized some of the leaves and smaller flowers from your walk through it yesterday. And a big gas tank of air from the Underground was connected to the side of the chamber and it would replace the air once Frisk was shut inside.

“It looks all-good,” you commented and admired the work the lot of you had managed to put together.

“Of course, it does, punk. Alphy doesn’t do anything half-assed. Do you, honey?”

Alphys started stuttering so badly that she couldn’t get a word out and her yellow complexion turned pink with a blush. It only worsened when Undyne laughed fondly and planted a swift kiss on the dinosaur monster’s cheek.

Even after everything that had happened between the two of them, they still acted like a young couple in love at times. But other times, it was clear they had been together for quite a while and they had had their fair share of fights. It was impressive that they had managed to stick together through the tragedy, disability and fear. You wondered if they would be so lucky in whatever alternate timeline Frisk might create if the bombing and the war was stopped.

Toriel arrived with Frisk, who headed straight to Sans to hug him.

“missed you too, kid,” Sans said and patted their head.

“IT LOOKS LIKE EVERYONE HAVE ARRIVED!” Papyrus announced as Professor Goodwin came out from the guest office he had been borrowing to store his equipment. Sans had been sent to fetch it yesterday from the professor’s office and it would be enable them to watch Frisk’s heart rate but also monitor their soul as long as they were wearing the wires.

“Are you sure that you are ready to do this, my child?” Toriel asked as she took Frisk’s hand. “I know I am just a silly old lady who doesn’t understand all of this but… are you sure you want to do this?”

Frisk started signing and Toriel looked concentrated at their hands.

“they are ready,” Sans translated as Toriel still looked a little lost. “they want to bring you back asgore.”

Toriel looked overwhelmed with emotion and glanced back and forth between Sans and Frisk.

“You are too pure, my little human,” Toriel said and pulled Frisk into a big hug. Frisk just smiled and hugged their mother right back.

With that Frisk stepped into the chamber and Alphys and Professor Goodwin went to work to attach the electrodes that would let us monitor Frisk’s health through the whole process.

Undyne, Papyrus, Mettaton and Toriel watched from the sidelines and all of them looked a little on edge. Sans and yourself were next to the chamber just checking that everything was still working perfectly.

But then the door opened and Mont was walked in by one of the Royal Guards.

“Am I too late?” the arm-less monster asked and upon seeing Frisk, made their way into the chamber with most haste.

Goodwin shouted to watch out for the wires as Mont snuggled up closely to Frisk, which must be their version of a hug when missing both arms. Frisk moved their arms around the monster carefully not to disturb the wires.

“I thought I had missed it. My parents wouldn’t let me come but I thought… I want to be here…”

Mont pulled back and Frisk started signing. Their hands moved so fast that you couldn’t keep up at all but judging by Mont’s expression, they understood everything.

“You’ll be okay. Your family is here,” Mont reassured Frisk as Goodwin ushered them out of the chambers to attach the last wires and set stuff in place. “We’re all right here, Frisk.”

With that, Mont finally stepped back and went straight to Toriel and leaned against her side.

“Frisk told Mont to look after Toriel, didn’t they?” you whispered to Sans.

“either your sign language is rabidly improving or you know us too well,” Sans said and thereby confirmed that you were correct.

Still something about his sentence hit you a little harder than you had anticipated. You did know them. You knew a lot about the monsters in this room after having been around them for over a month. You had learned a whole lot during your time.

“All good,” Goodwin said from behind his screen that was monitoring Frisk.

“it’s showtime, kid. just feel it out, ok? we need to see if you can even do it before we go ahead with a reset,” Sans said and Frisk nodded at the instruction. Alphys closed the chambers and the tank with Underground air was pumped into the chambers.

You watched with fascination and a bit of dread.

“Everything is okay so far,” Goodwin said from behind the screen.

Sans was still standing right next to the chamber, like he was scared something might happen to Frisk and he would need to step in at any moment. You had sort of the same feeling and you lingered in the middle ground with Alphys and Goodwin between the chamber and most of the monsters observing.

Frisk closed their eyes and took a deep breath. You moved around, so that you could watch the monitors with Goodwin and Alphys. Everything still seemed fine. Frisk’s heart rate was normal. The heart-shaped image, which was just white because it couldn’t read soul colors, glowed steadily.

You could feel the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, as Frisk’s heart rate started to go up. It wasn’t the crackling feeling in the air as when Sans used magic but this certainly felt like some type of magic. Your body felt like a tightly wound spring and oddly, you had a bit of the feeling like your soul being detached inside of your chest.

Frisk was frowning inside of the chamber and clenching their fists and their heart rate kept climbing and soon enough the machine started to beep with warnings.

“What is that?” Toriel asked instantly and she would probably have moved forward if Undyne hadn’t put a firm hand on her shoulder.

“Let the scientists handle it,” Undyne said and you were almost touched in the trust in her voice. “They know what they’re doing and they all care about Frisk.”

“It is fine, monster queen,” Goodwin said. “It’s just like Frisk is running fast.”

“kid, you’re okay in there?” Sans asked. “if you feel bad, you just stop, okay?”

You weren’t sure Frisk was even listening. Their heart rate kept beeping and Goodwin was right that the accelerated pulse could be compared to what happened when exercising, or running in particular. But at these levels it was like Frisk was sprinting and the human body was not made for doing that for very long.

“Maybe we should s-stop it,” Alphys said as she watched the monitor with caution.

Her words seemed to reach Frisk who firmly did just one sign with their hands: No.

You were inclined to agree with Alphys though. Drops of sweat appeared in Frisk’s hairline but you could see from their face that it wouldn’t matter what any of you thought. The expression they wore was one of pure determination.

“you feel it, don’t you? your lost magic? can you reach it?” Sans asked.

Frisk nodded their head and then did the sign for: Maybe.

“Frisk, dear, be careful,” Toriel advised, sandwiched between Mont and Papyrus now with Undyne right behind her.

“We all believe in you, little human!” Mettaton cheered.

The heart rate monitor was still beeping but suddenly the soul monitor started reacting too. The light glow in the heart shape started fading and the machine beeped more rapidly.

“what is happening?” Sans demanded to know, with his palm pressed against the glass side of the chamber. “what is that?”

“I’m not sure,” Goodwin said. “But their soul… it’s like it’s fading or something. The values are dropping rapidly and the heart rate is going even higher now.”

“T-this is no g-good,” Alphys said and she looked torn about what to do.

Toriel clearly wasn’t, as she moved past Papyrus, Mont and Undyne entirely and stepped towards the chamber. You felt frozen to your spot too and speechless because you could feel the determination in the air. It felt thick and heavy, much heavier than when Frisk’s soul had actually been out for you to see.

There was no way Frisk was backing down from this. Too much was riding on it and again you found yourself wishing that you could take some of the responsibility off Frisk’s young shoulders.

“Frisk, stop this. You’re getting hurt, dear. We can’t lose you too. Please come out,” Toriel said with a cloven hoof against the glass.

However, Frisk just shook their head and did some more signs. Toriel looked to Sans for a translation.

“they’re saying that they can do this. they can feel the magic. it’s right there but something’s wrong,” Sans bit out and he didn’t sound satisfied with Frisk’s words at all. “kid, you need to stop. if something’s wrong then you should not try to control magic, it’ll only…”

Sans hadn’t even finished his warning before something went wrong.

It was like an energy pulse and it reminded you of the thing Sans had done to the guards in POCAM to knock everyone out. Back then Undyne had stepped in front of you to absorb some of the impact.

Right now, the energy went right through you. You had expected it to hurt but it just left a tingling sensation on your skin.

The monsters were not as lucky though. Sans and Toriel came flying past you, seemingly pushed back by whatever Frisk had released. You blinked and tried to get your eyes to focus while it seemed like the air around you was dusty and heavy.

“doe!”

You looked behind you to find Sans and Toriel against the corner of the room, pressed up against the wall alongside with Mettaton, Papyrus, Undyne, Alphys and Mont. Toriel and Undyne were thrashing uncontrollably but it seemed to have little effect.

Much like when Sans had trapped you against the wall before you had been allowed into his home, it was like they were stuck there by powerful magic.

However, Professor Goodwin was still in his spot by the monitor.

You weren’t sure what the hell was going on but there was also a buzzing sound, which served to drown out the shouts from the monsters across the room.

“I have no idea what is happening,” Goodwin shouted to you over the buzzing.

You looked to Frisk in the chambers and the teenager had fallen to their knees now. Their face looked both haunted and vacant and it sent a chill through you.

“What are their values?” you shouted back to Goodwin.

“On the verge of a heart attack and the soul glow is dull.”

That finally got your stiff legs moving. You cast a glance behind you to the monsters still pinned magically against the wall. Sans’ eye was glowing bright blue but it didn’t seem like he could do anything with his hands pinned to his sides.

The monsters couldn’t help. Frisk had kept going, even as they felt something was wrong. You had little doubt that it had something to do with the spots of hopelessness. The atmospheric contraption seemed to correctly have reactivated Frisk’s magic. Frisk might have found it but it seemed as if they weren’t able to wield it with a soul still damaged from trauma. You knew you shouldn’t have let them get in there without considering the blackened spots on their soul.

Fuelled by the determination in the air, you started making you way toward the chamber.

“What are you doing?” Goodwin was shouting at you but you didn’t care.

Frisk was just trying to help. They wanted to restore everything. They wanted Asgore back. They wanted their friends undamaged.

But that didn’t mean that they had to do it all alone.

You knew it might be dangerous trying to approach someone who had literally just pushed away a boss monster and someone like Sans but you also knew you had to try. It got more difficult to move forward the closer you got but you kept moving anyway.

You managed to click open the door of the chamber and you had naively hoped that would be enough to break Frisk out of their trance but nothing changed, so you stepped forward.

“Frisk,” you called but the teenager didn’t react.

They were still just staring dead ahead with that vacant stare. It was like they weren’t even here. There was no way that you were letting them get brain damaged or have a heart attack or whatever magical side effect might occur.

They were too young, too precious and too good for ending up like that.

You knew now that Frisk had turned into a ruthless killer in a different timeline. They might be capable of horrible things but they were capable of great ones too and they deserved to be able to continue living.

“Frisk,” you called again and stepped into the chambers on rocky legs that threatened to collapse under the pressure that was surrounding Frisk.

“You need to come back to us, Frisk. We need you. Your family is right here. They can’t lose you. Frisk, _please_.”

Frisk was not reacting to your words at all, so you reached out and grabbed their arm and it was like you got an electric shock. Every nerve in your body felt ignited and it burned. The pressure inside of your skull felt like it was growing and you wondered if your head might burst under the pressure.

But even in pain and utterly confused, you tried to focus on Frisk. Frisk had found their magic and now it seemed out of control. They were the only one who could bring it back under control.

Against your better judgment, you moved closer to Frisk until you could put your arms around them.

You recalled the feeling of being stuck in the void. This felt like the opposite. Instead of Sans fading away in your arms, Frisk was too hot to hold but you still clung on.

You thought of everything that had happened since you met Frisk. It had all started with them. Ever since you had taken one look on their face, your life would be forever changed. This young human had changed history and there was no way you were letting them die or get hurt by themselves.

Suddenly, the air around you changed and you gasped for air while your arms were still clutching onto Frisk for dear life. You pulled back a bit and your eyes met Frisk’s. They finally looked like themselves.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor little Frisk. They just want to help so badly and they kept pushing on even as their soul wasn't strong enough to hold to magic after the trauma had weakened it. And I do wonder why our dear reader was able to make them regain their senses and I would love to hear your theories on the matter. There is a tiny hint about it but mostly it's very subtle but you'll get to hear Sans' take on the whole thing in the next chapter. But the magic is back! And that means the real decision about whether or not to reset needs to be taken and the reader still hasn't revealed how she feels about it to Sans. And what did you think about Goodwin's warnings that the monsters are constantly weaponised? Correct or prejudice?
> 
> Also, thank you so much for getting this story past 5,000 reads! It's my first Undertale story and I was worried if I would be able to write well in this wonderful universe and I'm so happy that so many people seem to like it. And thank yo guys for all of the kudos and especially all the people who take time to comment on this story.
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday the 25th of February 2018. Usual upload time is 8 PM CET.


	30. A Democratic Vote

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone seemed so confused at to what had happened between her and Frisk but the determined human definitely got their magic back somehow. That meant that the reset was on the horizon and she had yet to tell anyone about her reservations but she finally snaps and tells Sans all the things she kept quiet about.

Your hands were on Frisk’s slender shoulders. Their eyes staring back at you with wonder and confusion. But they looked okay. They were present, even if their entire body was shaking.

You huffed out something caught between a laugh and a sigh of relief.

“Don’t you scare us like that, kid,” you said before you felt both you and Frisk being swept up in some furry and strong arms.

“My little Frisk,” Toriel choked out and you felt a tear land on the top of your head. You were secretly glad to have been picked up and taken out of that chamber because you weren’t sure if your legs could move if they wanted to.

Toriel sat down the two of you carefully and you managed to force your body to stay standing. Sans was next to you in the next moment and he put an arm around your waist and you leaned against him.

“are you both okay?”

“I’m fine,” you said.

You were. You just felt exhausted and your limps felt heavy but your head had cleared as the pressure had disappeared.

Frisk nodded too and Toriel seized them in another hug. Mettaton, Papyrus, Alphys, Undyne and Mont had all came closer too and you were in a circle of monsters.

“YOU SURE GAVE US A FRIGHT THERE HUMANS! WHAT HAPPENED?”

“Frisk wasn’t strong enough,” Professor Goodwin said from behind the monitor. “But their values skyrocketed when she touched them. Their levels quadrupled in an instant. It shouldn’t even be possible. It’s off the record with any measured human soul values.”

“T-that would be the m-magic,” Alphys explained. “It’s r-requires monster like levels to function. But I d-do not know how Doe was a-able to kick Frisk’s s-soul back to normal.”

Your head was still spinning a little bit but you tried you best to keep up. It made no sense. You weren’t magic. You had just tried to help Frisk when everyone else had been pushed away.

“I just…” you said and all eyes turned to you and you felt a little unsure. “I just wanted to help. I just hoped that they would be okay. They had to be okay. We couldn’t lose you, Frisk.”

As you said the last bit, you looked over to Frisk, still in their adoptive mother’s arms and the smile they shot you sent warm feeling right to your core. You weren’t sure how you’d done it but you’d helped. It was almost ironic that you had been the one to help restore the powers that you didn’t want to be used.

“i know how,” Sans said suddenly and you twisted your head to look behind you, where Sans was still standing close to you to make sure you remained upright.

“H-how?” Alphys asked and she was wearing her analytical serious face.

“CLEARLY, FRISK JUST NEEDED THE HELP OF ANOTHER HUMAN,” Papyrus suggested.

“you’re not far off, bro. there’s something about both frisk and doe’s souls that all of you don’t know but i can only explain if they both give permission.”

You looked to Frisk, who nodded immediately. Clearly, they weren’t worried about the spots of hopelessness anymore. You weren’t sure if it was a good idea for monsters to know that you had a duality soul or shatter lines but at the same time, you trusted the people in this room, even Goodwin.

“You can tell them, Sans,” you told him, because you were also curious to how your soul type had anything to do with what had just passed between you and Frisk.

“frisk’s soul had been marked by trauma. spots of hopelessness.”

Several monsters gasped, Toriel started crying again and hugged Frisk even tighter, even as they tried to get their hands free to repeat the sign for okay over and over again.

“My little baby, I’m so sorry,” Toriel sobbed and then sounded angry. “Sans, why didn’t you tell me?”

“Miss T-Toriel, Frisk didn’t want you to k-know,” Alphys explained and Frisk nodded to confirm it.

“but we weren’t sure if it was the spots or just being up here that was the reason frisk couldn’t use their powers. i suspect it was a combination. but doe has a soul with shatter lines made of determination.”

Alphys had not known that and she was the only one who looked shocked where all the other monsters looked confused. You gathered that they possibly didn’t know a lot about human soul features.

“S-Shatter lines? That only h-happens when a soul is almost torn a-apart.”

“yeah, but shatter lines are formed out of determination not to let that happen. and i think doe is somehow able to generate and transfer determination when someone else is falling apart. when we got stuck in the void escaping from the pocam, i couldn’t get us home.”

Hearing Sans said that sent a chill down your spine and you instantly tried to move closer to him. It didn’t make any sense because he _had_ gotten you out of the void but the mere thought of being stuck in that cold and hopeless place was horrible.

“But you got back, Sans! You’re not making any sense!” Undyne argued.

“i did but i shouldn't have been able to. i was fading. i was too drugged up and hurt. but somehow, i suddenly found more energy that hadn’t been there before. that had to be you,” Sans said and said the last part to you. “you let me borrow some of your strength and now you did the same to frisk.”

That brought on a whole discussion and you could hear voices overlapping but it was difficult to focus on exactly what people were saying. You could hear disbelief and astonishment generally.

Surprisingly, Papyrus was the one who got everyone to calm down.

“YOUR ARGUING IS NOT GOOD FOR THE HUMANS! LOOK AT FRISK AND DOE. THEY NEED TO REST AND BE CHECKED. SANS, YOU WILL CHECK THEIR SOULS. ALPHYS AND PROFESSOR GUY, YOU WILL READ THAT MACHINE. TORIEL, YOU NEED TO SIT DOWN TOO. YOU’RE SHAKING. UNDYNE, HELP TORIEL. METTATON, YOU WILL GO TRAIN WITH THE HUMANS TODAY. MONT, YOUR PARENTS MUST BE WORRIED, SO GO HOME. AND I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL RETURN WITH CAKE SHORTLY. CAKE HELPS EVERYTHING.”

Papyrus’ booming voice was enough to shut everyone up and you sent him a thankful smile. It was odd. He was naïve at times and silly but he could definitely step up to the plate when he needed to.

“You don’t get to order me around,” Undyne huffed and crossed her arms and stared at Papyrus, who had been standing tall before but now looked like a nervous kid again.

“UNDYNE, I JUST MEANT…”

“I would appreciate if you found my chair,” Toriel said and just now you noticed how shaky her hand on her cane was.

Undyne seemed to mollify a bit with a direct order from the former queen and people went about with what Papyrus had suggested.

“Well done, Pap,” you said and caught hold of Papyrus’ arm as he passed by. He blushed at the compliment and did a bow for you. You felt a giggly laugh bubble up in your throat. He was so adorable. You would miss him when everything reset.

You didn’t need Goodwin and Alphys’ analysis of the monitor. You knew that Frisk had their magic back. It was the only reasonable explanation for their body feeling like it was on fire when you touched them.

Nevertheless, Sans took you and Frisk to a secluded room. It looked like Mettaton had readied it for broadcasting. The robot monster was adamant to get back on the air after having been captured for so long. As soon as Alphys figured out a way to actively hack all signals, she had promised she would get him some airtime. You wondered if the reason she hadn’t gotten around to it was because she thought things would just reset and her efforts would have been fruitless.

Undyne wheeled Toriel in a moment later and no one protested.

“Souls make me feel funny, so I’ll go see if Papyrus needs any help with that cake,” Undyne said. “You better be okay, punks, or I’ll personally beat you up.”

Sans called out Frisk’ soul first and the room was bathed in an intense red glow. It was definitely brighter than before and upon closer inspection there was no black spots anymore.

“looks like you’re all red again, kid,” Sans commented with their soul floating over his palm.

Toriel had moved closer to look too and suddenly she reached out, as if she wanted to touch the soul. The hand Sans wasn’t using to hold the soul, shot out so fast and caught the boss monster’s arm before she could touch the soul.

Frisk looked a little unsure but you recalled how vulnerable it was to have your soul on display like that.

“toriel,” Sans said in a low voice and you could see by the way his phalanges dug into her fur that he was holding down with a lot of pressure. “you should not touch this. i know it’s tempting but touching human souls makes them your slave. remember?”

It was like Toriel hadn’t been herself and now she blinked rapidly and pulled back her hand.

“Oh dear, Frisk, I’m sorry. Human souls are… well, like catnip to monsters, I suppose” Toriel said and let out a little laugh. “But I am happy to see that your soul is all bright and red again. It has always been so beautiful.”

Toriel reached over to squeeze Frisk’s cheeks. Sans put their soul back carefully.

“you do look great, kid. how do you feel?”

Frisk started signing, their hands moving rapidly.

“they’re saying that they feel their magic again. they think they might be able to reset without the atmosphere chamber now. it was like they just needed a kick-start.”

A kick-start you had granted them.

“That is wonderful news, my child,” Toriel said and pulled Frisk onto her lap.

“do check with alphys and professor for the numbers, will you? then i’ll just check doe here.”

Toriel nodded and reached down to turn her chair’s wheels but they glowed blue as did the door as Sans magically took care of it.

Frisk signed: Thanks. Toriel tried to protest but Sans wasn’t listening and the door shut and left you and Sans on your own.

“Toriel almost touched Frisk’s soul,” you commented.

“yeah.”

“I didn’t realize it was so difficult to withstand that.”

“it is.”

“You did the first time you took out my soul,” you recalled.

“i almost didn’t, if you remember. and speaking of souls, let’s check to make sure yours is okay.”

“That’s why you sent Toriel out, isn’t it? You didn’t want her near mine if she was already tempted by Frisk’s.”

“just let me check you, doe.”

“No,” you said suddenly and reached out to grab the hand that Sans had started to move towards you.

Sans flinched at the contact and frowned at you.

“you don’t want me to? i won't touch it, you know that.”

“It doesn’t matter. Nothing matters. You heard Frisk. They feel okay. They have their magic back. Things can be reset to a time before the war. It doesn’t matter how my soul is because it’ll be like none of this ever happened. We’re erasing over four years.”

“you’re truly against a reset? but don’t you see how much better things could be if the war never happened? how many lives could be saved? how much hurt could be avoided?”

“What? So you’re just going to reset every time something bad happens?” you countered. “Every little speed bump and Frisk would just rewind a little and you could try to create the perfect timeline?”

“we’re not talking about speed bumps. we’re talking about war and countless deaths,” Sans said angrily and you felt the air crackle with magic. You recalled Professor Goodwin’s words of the monster being dangerous because they were always weaponized but you still didn’t feel frightened of Sans. Not anymore. Despite the surge of magic in the air, you knew perfectly well how good Sans was at keeping himself in check.

“And what if Frisk loses the ability again? What if Frisk is the one who dies? Is it worth it?”

Your hand was still around Sans’ wrist and none of you had made a move but now he clenched his fist and pulled back from your grip. He ducked his head and you could see how tense his whole body was.

“my family got hurt, doe, and a lot of people have died. humans and monsters. you lost your family. wouldn’t you go back in time and change that if you could?”

It was something you had spent too much time thinking of while you were grieving and so close to giving up.

If only there was a way to save them.

If only there was some magical solution to get them back. But there hadn’t been and you had to just try to breathe every single day, no matter how much it hurt.

But if there had been someone like Frisk offering to turn back the time for you, you would still have hesitated. And now, ten years later, you knew your answer with certainty, even if it hurt to say it out loud.

You knew you had to. You had to explain to Sans why you were so against the reset. You had kept you tongue so many times and one occasion when you’d tried to bring up the topic, Sans had shut you down.

But there was a different expression in his eye sockets now. He was finally listening.

“No, I wouldn’t want to change it. I lost everything ten years ago in that car accident but I wouldn’t want to go back. What if I did? What if I managed to prevent it? Would they still die, just a year later in a different car accident? Would they get cancer and slowly wither away? Would they live ‘till they were a hundred and had grandkids and great-grandkids? Would they get to achieve everything they wanted to before leaving this world? I don’t know,” you said and you felt so many emotions burning inside of you.

Sans seemed to sense it because he remained quiet but you could see he was listening with every fiber of his being. You took a breath and continued.

“There are too many variables and that’s just for my personal family tragedy. You’re talking about changing the event that started a war. How do you know you won’t set something worse in motion? Will you just keep manipulating time until we’re all just contorted and we don’t know how things were supposed to turn out? I don’t want to go back and save my family because I know they wouldn’t want that. What if I make my own death the premature one instead? I’m all for being a martyr but I’m not sure how they would handle the grief. I feel like I barely survived it.”

You were shaking with anger now. You felt anger at yourself and anger at the world. The world had taken your family from you. Everything had had a ripple effect and even with the trauma you’d gone through, you weren’t sure you could allow the ripples to change. Sans was still listening with a neutral face.

“And a selfish reason is that I don’t want to change the person I am today. I know I’m far from perfect, I’m pretty fucking shattered at times, but I survived. I was determined to survive. I’ve made a difference here. I’m not proud of how I acted when we first met. I was hateful towards monsters and I scared of you. Sure, I was fascinated too but I’m ashamed that I once believed that you were bloodthirsty animals incapable of compassion. I’m sorry that I believed the lies but I’ve learned from my mistake and evolved. I’m proud of what I went through and I’m still learning every single day.”

“doe, you…” Sans said but you lifted a hand to indicated that he shouldn’t interrupt you because you weren’t finished yet.

“I’m feeling terrified that Frisk will be able to wipe away all my progress and reset me. What if I become someone who doesn’t survive? What if I become someone who turns evil? I can’t know what will happen. I can only work with what I’ve got in this life. I can’t let my mind dwell on other timelines and I don’t envy that your mind does that without your consent. But I don’t want to change. I’ve been flawed, I am still flawed, but I haven’t done anything I’ve seriously regretted. I don’t believe in living life with regret. Every time I’ve encountered a pivotal moment, I’ve made a choice and I stand by my choices.”

“you would still be making choices, doe.”

“If Frisk wiped everything and we still met four years later and I held a knife to your spine… would I dust you? Would something small and insignificant be the thing that pushed me over the edge to kill you? I don’t want to turn into a person that doesn’t have my memories or all the things I’ve learned. I won’t remember like you will, nor will anyone else, monster or human. I know we’re trying to stop the war but I don’t think going back in time is the way to do that.”

Sans was quiet now and he was frowning deeply. You wanted to reach out and pull him into a hug because you knew that your words hurt him. But you also knew that they had to be said. It wasn’t that you didn’t understand or respect his reasoning for wanting a reset. You got exactly why he wanted to go back but you just feared that it would make things worse. You also worried Sans had forgotten his objectivity and completely disregarded the opposite view and now you had to be the one to hammer it into his skull.

“I know you want Asgore to be saved. I know you want Toriel to avoid the three-year coma that stripped away most of her magic. I know you want Undyne to be able to see. I know you want Alphys to still believe in humans and not be terrified of us. I know you want Papyrus to have his own real hand. I know you want Frisk to never have to go through all of this pain. But those things happened, Sans. Surely, you must know more than anyone that going back doesn’t change that. It still happened.”

Blue liquid gathered in the bottom of Sans’ eyes sockets and you moved closer but still you didn’t dare to touch him. The room was still charged with magic and you worried you had lost the permission to touch him now that you were speaking against him. But all you wanted to do was gather him up in a hug and tell him that things would be okay, even if you didn’t reset.

“You’re just trying to cheat the system by rebooting it. I know it’s tempting. I would like to be held by my parents again. I would like to never know grief and hopelessness like that. I would like to see if I had turned out better if I hadn’t lost everything at such a fragile age. But that’s what it is… wishes. A desperate child’s wishes to turn back the clock. But my adult self, the person who was cultivated because of all of these struggles I’ve been through, says to stay determined, keep my integrity and always be kind. And turning back would be a huge dishonor to her.”

You could feel your eyes burning too and you knew you were crying, even if you weren’t sure when you had started. Sans looked so lost and fragile.

It felt terrifying to finally speak your mind but at the same time you knew you had needed to do this. Frisk would probably still reset but at least you would be erased after having laid it all out there.

“we need a vote.”

“A what?” you asked and sniffled. After everything you had said, that had not been what you had thought Sans would say.

“you’re against resetting and that needs to be respected, so we need a vote to see what the majority wants.”

“Sans, that was not what I was trying to say. I just feel like you need to consider the unforeseen consequences of what might happen if Frisk takes us back over four years!”

“we’re doing a vote.”

With that Sans got up and left the room. You stood in the middle of the room and felt very much off balance. You had not expected that he would react like that. It was a rather cold approach and you wondered if your words had even reached him.

He was being a stubborn bonehead.

But he had looked hurt by what you had said and you knew he was just acting out. Fine. You could do a vote, even if you knew that wouldn’t matter. The majority of monsters wanted their lives back from before the bombing.

Papyrus and Undyne had arrived with cake but everything turned gloomier when Sans gathered everyone.

“it has come to my attention that not everyone thinks that the reset is a good idea,” Sans said. “so we’ll have a vote for the counsel before making the decision.”

Frisk signed something along the lines: what is going on?

You just clenched your teeth.

“WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT BROTHER? IS THERE SOMETHING BAD ABOUT THE RESET?”

You weren’t sure how much Sans had managed to keep Papyrus out of the loop. You almost wanted to repeat your speech for all of the monsters but at the same time, you weren’t sure if you were brave enough to say it to all of them. It had been different just speaking to Sans. You felt like you could tell him everything, even if he clearly didn’t want to hear it.

“B-But we’re r-resetting to stop the w-war,” Alphys said. “And get A-Asgore back and m-make sure none of y-you got hurt in the explosion.”

“i know. but we’re still having an official vote. and i ask we allow doe a vote for this special occasion, even if she is not a counsel member.”

“Sans, what the hell is going on?” Undyne demanded to know.

“toriel, call for the vote,” Sans said instead of answering.

“But Sans, do you not think you could explain a bit better?”

“it’s been an eventful day already. the humans need rest. but we need to have this vote. please, tori.”

You’re heart broke a little at Sans’ plea. He sounded broken. You had done that to him. You had made him unsure. You weren’t entirely sure what he was trying to prove with this vote though.

Frisk looked utterly confused and signed to you but your brain was too tired to even focus on trying to understand their signs.

Toriel cleared her throat. “The counsel with an additional special member will hold a vote on whether or not to reset to before the bombing. All opposed say no.”

“No,” you forced out and again you felt how all the monsters’ eyes shot to you.

“WHY ARE YOU OPPOSING? WHAT IS THIS?”

Toriel looked uncertain but continued anyway. “All those in favor say aye.”

Predictably, Undyne and Alphys spoke, as did Toriel but Papyrus and Sans kept quiet. Frisk hesitantly did the sign for yes but they looked very unsure.

“Err… four for, one against and two blank. The reset proceeds.”

“Glad that we got that out of the way,” you said to Sans and turned on your heel and started to walk out. You weren’t sure how to interpret Sans not voting. You had a feeling Papyrus was just looking to his big brother for guidance and had copied him.

“Punk, where do you think you’re going? You have some explaining to do!” Undyne demanded.

“I’m tired. I’ll see you lot tomorrow,” you called back and kept walking.

“DOE, PLEASE DON’T BE MAD. WE STILL HAVE CAKE TO EAT,” Papyrus yelled.

“I’m not mad or trying to get in the way, I’m just worried, okay? I’m fine, you guys.”

As soon as you exited the laboratory, you stopped to a halt. You didn’t want to go back to the skeleton brothers’ home. So instead, you just kept walking around town.

You crossed paths with humans and monsters, all looking blissfully happy in their little bubble of New New Home. Maybe you had been too affected by living in the happiness bubble as well. Here it didn’t feel like the war was going on.

It didn’t feel like humans and monsters were at war in here.

It had felt safe and like home. Perhaps, that was why you were so reluctant to see it all disappear. You were so hard on Sans for being emotional and only seeing one side of the story but maybe you did the same.

Maybe you just didn’t want all of your struggles to have been for nothing. You had worked so hard to be the person you had become today. It had been a constant fight for years and you finally felt like you had found some sense of purpose and belonging in your life.

You might be the selfish one. It was probably a good thing that everything would be reset tomorrow.

Asgore deserved a second chance at life. Undyne did deserve to see. Papyrus deserved his own hand. Alphys deserved to still love humans, instead of fearing them. Toriel deserved to have her strength restored. Frisk and Sans deserved to be spared of the trauma they had been through over the past four years.

You did want all of that for them. You wanted it desperately but it felt too good to be true.

You kept seeing all of them being slaughtered instead. Would they all die? Would Frisk so that things could never be reset again? And worst of all, you couldn’t get the image of yourself in a POCAM uniform out of your head or the feeling of holding a blade against Sans’ spine and pushing it through until he would turn to dust.

You shivered as you walked and almost tripped over someone.

You shouldn’t have been surprised to find Napstablook just lying on their back with a pair of big headphones.

“Sorry,” you said and the ghost monster opened their eyes. “I’m too tired to look out where I step.”

“you… did i ever thank you? for saving my cousin? if not… thank you,” Napstablook said and surprised you by getting up. “if you are tired… why are you not sleeping, though?”

“I don’t know if you know that I’m staying with Papyrus and Sans and well, I sort of had an argument with Sans, so I don’t feel like going there.”

“huh… you’re more than welcome to crash at mine… mettaton wouldn’t mind. it’s dangerous too walk around with tired eyes.”

You felt another pang of emotion in your chest and you wondered if you could take any more of it. You had only met Napstablook a handful of times and yet they offered up their home like that.

“I would actually love that,” you said.

“you? really?” Napstablook asked and their already big eyes widened. “oh, well… come this way. i didn’t think anyone would want to be my guest.”

“You are a wonderful monster, Napstablook. I would be honored,” you said.

Napstablook explained that they shared the house with Mettaton but you said that was perfectly fine. You got situated on the sofa and Napstablook asked if you wanted a hot beverage. You almost asked for tea but that made you think of Sans and caused you to think of the unrelenting expression on his face as he had called for a vote about the reset.

“I’m good, thank you. Just these blankets are fine.”

“do… you want to talk about it? i hear that helps… sometimes. and you helped get mettaton back… so i’m in your debt.”

You shook your head gently and pulled the blanket closer to you. “You’re not indebted to me at all, Napstablook. And I only helped save Mettaton, we all worked on it together. But… I suppose I do owe you a bit of an explanation. I assume Mettaton has spoken to you about the possibility of resetting to before the war?”

Napstablook nodded. “yeah… we’re close… again, now. he told me.”

“Well, I’m not sure it’s a good idea. And when Sans pulled me aside earlier, I told him that but I don’t know if he was truly listening or just being baffled I spoke against him like that. And it got conclusively decided that we are doing the reset, so I suppose nothing that happened today or early tomorrow will matter.”

“we… should be careful messing with the cosmos…” Napstablook said and then started rambling a bit.

You hummed in agreement as you sank deeper into the blankets. They were so soft and you were so tired. Whatever you had done to Frisk earlier, transferring your determination or whatever, had really taken it out of you.

You realized that Sans had never checked if you soul was okay. But again, everything was about to be reset anyway, so what did it matter? You yawned and let the soothing voice of Napstablook drift you off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Frisk's magic is back and the spots of hopelessness are gone! And like some of you guessed, our dear reader was able to use her determination to renew Frisk's. And freaking finally, the speech against resetting is included. Fun fact: the majority of that speech was written months ago and we've been working towards it for quite a while. I hope you liked it! And what did you think of Sans calling a vote so dramatically? And what are your feelings about the whole reset business after this chapter? And we got to see Napstablook again, which is legitimately one of my favourites and they aren't included enough in this. But I'm not sure if the other monsters will appreciate the reader just leaving without saying where she went. I hope you liked this chapter and as always, feedback is appreciated!
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday the 4th of March 2018. Usual upload time is 8 PM CET.


	31. A Reset Commitment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One final night under the stars. Secrets shared. Souls bared. The works were in motion and Frisk would be resetting everything in the morning.

You woke up to arguing voices. Your body still felt like you had run a marathon and you tried to just sink deeper into the soft sofa and ignore whatever the hell had almost woken you. You were well on your way to fall asleep again before you caught two names that made you feel fully awake.

“Sans and Papyrus have been worried sick and she’s just on our couch, Blooky!”

It was Mettaton’s mechanic voice and you sat up with a start that made your vision blurry.

“see what you have done… you woke our guest….” Napstablook said in their usual slow tone, so you weren’t sure if they were mad.

“She should be woken up!” Mettaton insisted. “You should know better than to hide away Sans’ human!”

“Excuse me?” you asked and your voice sounded heavy with sleep. You looked out the window to see that it was pitch black outside. It had only been early afternoon when you had come across Napstablook. How long had you been sleeping?

“sorry… we didn’t mean to wake you,” Napstablook apologized.

“It’s fine,” you said and pulled back the blanket. Had Napstablook covered you with it? How thoughtful. “What’s the time?”

“Almost midnight,” Mettaton replied. “I just finished a scan of entire New New Home to find you. Alphys insisted that it would calm Sans to know that you were probably still somewhere in the city. The short skeleton did insist that you were probably fine but he didn’t look calm at all.”

You hadn’t meant to worry Sans and Papyrus. Or get Alphys and Mettaton involved.

“And then I find you’ve just been snoozing on our couch. A head’s up would be nice, next time, Blooky!”

“i’ll… try to remember that.”

“Don’t be so hard on your cousin,” you argued. “Napstablook was just trying to help me and I have received nothing but kindness. But you’re right, I should have let someone know where I went.”

“I sent a group message out as soon as I found you. They’ve all been notified. But advice for next time? I love a dramatic exit as much as the next show robot, even if I’m mad I missed yours, but the other monsters don’t appreciate the dramatic flair like I do.”

You nodded and got to your feet. You wouldn’t have to keep Mettaton’s words in mind for “next time” because there wouldn’t be a next time. Time was about to be erased. Urgh, the whole thing made your brain hurt.

“I’ll go to the skeleton brothers’ home to let them know that I’m okay in person.”

You felt really bad if your unintended disappearance had given them a fright.

“mettaton will walk you home,” Napstablook offered and Mettaton looked mock offended but caved almost instantly.

It had been a surprise to learn that they were cousins but seeing them now, they acted more like siblings. They reminded you of Sans and Papyrus in the way they spoke to each other. You hadn’t gotten to spend much time with the robot and the ghost monster but you felt like you could have been good friends with both of them, if you had been granted the time to get to know them.

“It’s a nice offer but I can walk myself,” you said.

“No, it’s better that I take you. The city is blacked out during the night to make us less vulnerable to air attacks, so you might struggle to find you way.”

You didn’t object to that and soon enough you were walking through New New Home, which was indeed in pitch-black darkness and you were thankful for the light on Mettaton’s displays.

“I never knew you had to blackout the city during the night,” you commented. “I guess I just think of New New Home as this impenetrable fortress where the war can’t get in.”

“That is what we want everyone to see but our home has weaknesses. And you humans are clever. Sooner or later, the war will come here too. Your numbers far out-match ours, even if we have magic. I was told of the disk that inhibited Sans’ magic. I know you fixed that but more technology will appear to the same effects. Soon enough, the human race will take over again and we’ll be banished or murdered like before if things don’t change.”

“What are your thoughts on the reset, Mettaton? I assume you’re not on the counsel but you’re still quite a prominent monster,” you asked because Mettaton seemed quite a lot more insightful than his flashy television appearances suggested.

“I believe in rebirth, I mean just look at my own fabulous self. Thanks to Doctor Alphys, I have the body I always wanted but because of it, I was also vulnerable. Alphys said the humans who captured me almost entirely reprogrammed me. If they had found the audio safety lock, then I would have been done for. A monster controlled by human technology. But I wouldn’t have been without my body just because of those dangers. I guess, what I’m saying through a dramatic personal account, I think that things need to change. Maybe going back and trying over is the right thing. Or maybe we need to work with what we’ve got and just accept that there will always be weaknesses in our armor.”

You nodded and Mettaton came to a stop and you turned to see that you were just a few houses down from Sans and Papyrus’ home.

“Thank you for walking me home,” you said. “And will you thank Napstablook for the hospitality? I was quite lost and delirious but they found me and took care of me.”

“Yeah, Blooky tends to do that,” Mettaton said and his voice turned slightly less mechanic and more slow and deep like the ghost monster he was speaking of. “Well, either way. Goodnight, darling. And do tell that skeleton of yours that he doesn’t need to dent my metal or come after Blooky, alright?”

“He’s softer than he appears,” you said.

“Only for certain people, I believe. Have a good night.”

Mettaton spun around and started moving back to his own home. You walked over to the door of the place that had started to feel like home. You had called it home just now, hadn’t you?

Huh.

You had your hand on the doorknob but for some reason you couldn’t make yourself turn it and go in there. You sighed and walked around to the garden instead. You moved toward the little hilltop where you had sat and stargazed on the first night after you’d been invited into the skeleton monsters’ home and on the night where you were contemplating how to help Papyrus where you had studied Sans’ arm.

You sat down and the evening chill went right through you.

“you’ll be chilled to the bone just sitting out here,” Sans said as he undoubtedly had appeared just behind you.

“Good one, Sans. Could I borrow you hoodie like before then?”

A moment later the hoodie was placed around your shoulders, much like he had done this morning before you all left to test out the atmosphere chamber. It felt like a lifetime ago.

“I’m sorry if I scared you by leaving like that. I ran into Napstablook and I was so tired that they offered I could crash at theirs. Also I promised Mettaton that you wouldn’t hunt them down for housing me. Not that you would do that anyway, but you know.”

“can i sit?”

“Always, Sans.”

You felt him sit down, close to you but not as close as you would have liked. It was like there was this distance between you and it seemed only logical that it showed itself physically as well.

“did you not feel like you could come here? you must know we would never bother you if you wanted some space.”

You sighed and scooted closer to Sans, so you could lean against him. If you lost all the progress in the morning, you at least wanted to attempt to set things right before it happened. It should have been the opposite. Perhaps, you shouldn’t care about how you left things when you were going to lose everything but that just felt wrong. Besides, Sans would still remember stuff, even if you forgot it. He would remember you.

“I guess I didn’t know how to face you. I figured that you’d be quite mad at me.”

“what?” Sans said and made sure to catch your eyes before he spoke again. “i’m not mad at you. why would i be mad?”

“I don’t know how you feel, Sans, because you never talk to me about it. You just frown and go stone-faced. And what the hell was the purpose of that vote? You knew all the other monsters wanted to reset too.”

“i… i wasn’t really thinking clearly. i wanted to see what the other monsters were thinking. and you said a lot of things. and the worst part? it was like you shook my foundation. i’ve been so sure of the reset for four years. we’ve been waiting for toriel to wake up, so frisk would be stable enough to attempt it. but then they got kidnapped shortly after. and then it’s finally within reach and you’re standing there, telling me all the things i worried about but purposely ignored. and i just want people to be okay.”

Sans sniffled and you pulled your arms around him, even if it was a bit odd with the angle as you were sitting next to each other.

“I know. Me too. I want the war to be over too but maybe we should try to focus on solving that rather than counting on a reset. What if we get a worse route, Sans? What if Frisk turns bad and doesn’t become good again?”

“i know.”

Silence settled over you and you tilted your head back to look up at the stars. It was a beautiful night and the stars stood out wonderfully. They reminded you a bit about Sans when his white pupils expanded and started gleaming.

“you’re not hurt from stepping in with frisk earlier, right? i know you said i didn’t need to see your soul but…”

“You can see it, Sans. I was just feeling vulnerable already and on edge and I snapped at you. And then my mind started saying that none of this – none of what has passed between the two of us – matters at all because it’ll all be erased anyway. But I guess, I like to forget that you’ll remember.”

“i will,” Sans confirmed and he sounded almost sad. “so you’d be okay with me calling it out?”

You nodded and Sans’ moved forward his hand. You felt the lightest touch of his fingertips at your chest and then he pulled back and your soul followed. You weren’t sure if you’d ever tire of seeing souls.

They were beautiful and unique. You remembered the bright red light of Frisk’s soul. Your own shone brightly too, the deep blue and green colors intertwining and casting a beautiful glow around you. Your shatter lines were still there, red lines that marked how you had held yourself together through very tough times.

The lines looked a little different this time though. They were more dull and at dark red rather than the brilliant red from before. But then Sans moved his free palm towards your soul and instinctively the lines glowed like they had before.

Your heart rate sped up and some biological part of you was warning you that this was the equivalent of baring your neck to a predator but your logical brain knew that Sans would never take this moment of vulnerability to hurt you. On the contrary, he was checking to make sure you were okay.

“it looks normal…” Sans said and he sounded extremely relieved. “a little dull in the determination in your shatter lines but they still react when someone nears them.”

You nodded and watched how the vibrant colors gleamed and glowed. Even if you felt weak and hopeless at times, the mere sight of your soul made you feel strong and capable.

“Did you mean the thing you said about me saving us in the void?”

“it’s the only thing that makes sense. i wasn’t sure how we got out. i could never figure it out until i saw you do the same thing to frisk. you’re the one who gave them strength to properly heal and reconnect with their magic.”

“That doesn’t make me magic, right?”

Sans chuckled, low and amused. “no. no magic involved. just human stuff. but one should never underestimate the stuff you guys are made of. you’re clever and strong in ways monsters aren’t. your sheer willpower is admirable. you can do almost anything, including giving each other the will to continue.”

Sans moved his palm with your soul floating over it back toward you but he halted before he put it back.

“did you mean what you said about how me seeing your soul made you trust me more?”

“Things changed at that point, definitely. I didn’t know just how vulnerable I made myself when I asked you to show me my soul. Looking back, I was rather foolish but you were so gentle. You didn’t take advantage of the dumb human that put herself on a platter for you to exploit while you had every reason to hate me.”

“i never hated you. in the beginning i just wanted you to talk and i saw you as more of a means to an end than a person. but when you spared me, after you had the chance to dust me, i was reminded that you were a complex person with beliefs and feelings. after that, i wanted you to trust us, to trust me and to understand where we were coming from but it was never hatred.”

“I think I hated you a bit in the beginning,” you confessed in a whisper. “But only because I didn’t know better.”

“i didn’t exactly make it easy for you by kidnapping you,” Sans agreed and moved to settle your soul back in its home.

It had felt different this time. Sure, you had still felt vulnerable but at the same time you had felt safe. You had begun to associate Sans with safety as if nothing bad could happen as long as he was next to you. Clearly, that wasn’t factual because lots of bad stuff had happened when Sans had been near.

It made you think that it was your heart rather than your mind which had made the decision that Sans was safe. Or maybe it was because he put your soul at ease.

“do you remember what you asked me about in the underground?”

“About a thousand questions, I believe. You’ll have to be more specific, bone boy.”

The nickname made Sans’ grin widen. “the only one i didn’t properly answer. about you seeing my soul.”

You turned your attention from the night’s sky to Sans’ skull. His pupils were large again and now he was the one who looked vulnerable.

“Yeah, but it’s fine, Sans. I didn’t know that monster souls couldn’t be outside of the bodies, unless for mating. Don’t worry about it.”

“well, everything i said was true but there is a way you can see my specific soul without that. perks of stemming from the void of bones i suppose.”

You had been leaning against Sans and now you sat back as he pulled the T-shirt he wore over his head and exposed his entire upper body. Your eyes scanned how all the bones connected to each other and on some level, you worried about him getting cold in the evening chill; even if you knew he couldn’t feel temperature like you.

“Are you sure, Sans? I asked because I was curious but with everything else going on around us maybe it’s best you’re as little attached to me as possible.”

Sans shook his head. “you’re clever but wrong. i want to recall as many good memories as possible, even if we lose what we have created here. you were right before. all the things still happened, even if we go back to overdo it. they happened and they are happening and you have to live in the moment.”

Sans closed his eye sockets and his skull was one of concentration. Slowly, you saw something heart shaped and white coming into focus within his ribcage. It just continued to glow, brighter and brighter and then Sans opened his eyes and his left eye was ablaze with blue.

“can you see it?” he asked hesitantly before daring to look down himself.

You nodded and reached out to take his hand. You instantly wanted to reach for the soul but you were fairly certain that was a big no-no, even if it was a monster’s soul in question now. It was slightly bigger than yours and Frisk’s and the white light was almost blinding and you had to squint your eyes to properly see it.

“It’s beautiful, Sans.”

“it’s just a plain white soul,” Sans argued which prompted you to move closer. Your face same to a halt just before your nose made contact with Sans’ breastbone. You kept you hands intertwined with Sans’, so you weren’t tempted to reach out. Sans glowed like a little sun and there was a tiny blue twinge over it because of the light emanating from his one glowing eye.

As you got closer, you could see that Sans’ soul wasn’t just plain white like he said. It had marks and lines. Spots were it didn’t glow as brightly. Shatter lines that were almost invisible because they were white like the rest of his soul but they were definitely there.

“You had quite the tough life too, huh?” you asked as you moved you face upwards so your faces were just a couple of inches apart.

Sans’ blue eyes faded away and so did the bright light from his soul and the world around you suddenly felt dark but you still felt so much light in your heart.

“i’m surprised that old thing even held up. between all the void training as a babybones and the horror when frisk got curious, it should probably have given out a long time ago.”

“I’m very glad it didn’t,” you said and pressed a kiss to Sans’ teeth. He reluctantly opened his mouth to reciprocate the kiss and you wondered if you should be afraid of his sharp teeth but then his magically conjured tongue came out to tentatively meet yours and you stopped worrying about that. He wouldn’t hurt you in any way.

It was still odd kissing Sans like this, especially now because it felt like a taste of the life you would never be able to have. Every soft or passionate touch shared between you would be erased and Sans would be the only one who could remember.

Gradually and naturally, the kissing came to a halt and you found yourself laying on your back, next to Sans and you were looking at the stars again.

“Frisk is going to reset tomorrow,” you said.

To Sans, to yourself, to the universe.

You’d felt Frisk’s determination to reach those resetting powers and you doubted anything or anyone could convince them to give up this mission. They had looked a little torn during the vote before agreeing to proceed with the reset but you knew that was most likely because of general confusion as to why someone, namely you, wouldn’t want to go back.

“i think they’re determined to, yeah. honestly, i’m not a hundred percent sure if it’s the right thing anymore but we have worked too hard on it to just turn back. i’m sorry.”

“Sans, I understand. It was always going to turn out this way, wasn’t it? I guess I’m just glad you’ll remember me in a hopefully more positive light now that we’ve talked things out.”

“of course, i will, doe.”

“And if we meet again, when I don’t know you? Give me a chance to come around but don’t let your guard down before you’re sure I’m okay. Like Frisk and many other humans, I have the capability to be really nasty as well. I might have become an entirely different person if you manage to come across me again.”

It felt scary to say it out loud in such definitive terms but you knew that you would feel bad if you didn’t issue a warning to Sans. But maybe he wouldn’t even need it. You might have died before your paths ever crossed or they just never would. The world was a big place.

“i’ll keep an eye socket out for you. and for the record, i think you’d deserve a second chance, just like frisk.”

You nodded and yawned. It had been wonderful to sleep on Napstablook and Mettaton’s sofa but you were evidently still tried. It might have been because you agreed to have your soul pulled out again.

“bed?”

“Bed,” you agreed.

Sans reached over and took your hand before making you a shortcut that dumped you right into his bed. You knew it might have been a better idea to try and distance yourself from the skeleton and the feelings bubbling in your chest because of what would have to happen in the morning but you didn’t want to.

You just wanted to make the most of the time you got, so you fell asleep soundly in Sans’ warm and loving embrace.

Papyrus woke you the following morning by pulling you out from the covers and continuing to swing you around the room like a rag doll.

“DOE, YOU HAD US ALL SO WORRIED UNTIL WE GOT METTATON’S MESSAGE AND I COULD FINALLY GO TO BED. WHY DID YOU NOT COME HOME? WE STILL LOVE YOU EVEN IF YOU DON’T WANT TO RESET. IT’S OKAY.”

It was a strange way to be woken but you moved to properly hug Papyrus rather than just dangling in his arms.

“I know, I’m sorry, Pap. I was just a little out of it yesterday.”

“THAT IS PERFECTLY UNDERSTANDABLE AFTER YOUR HEROIC SAVE OF FRISK. BUT IF THIS IS OUR LAST PROPER BREAKFAST BEFORE THE RESET THEN YOU NEED TO HELP ME COOK THE PERFECT MEAL.”

“Of course, I will but then you have to put me down first.”

“OH, RIGHTY. BUT YOU MUST COME NOW!” Papyrus said and jetted down the stairs.

You looked back toward the bed where Sans had been watching the two of you.

“Could you tell him stories of me when I’m gone? Just make sure he knew he had a human friend who loved him and his friendship so very much. I would hate for him not to know that.”

Sans nodded and he looked a little taken aback by emotion.

“pap has been lucky to know you.”

“I think I’m the lucky one, Sans,” you said and went downstairs with a smile and just hoped that Papyrus couldn’t see that you were using it to mask the sadness.

You didn’t really feel like eating a thing at breakfast because of the nerves. But you didn’t want to hurt Papyrus’ feelings so you chewed and swallowed mechanically. Sans took you to the laboratory through a shortcut after breakfast and you were thankful for it.

You were pretty sure you couldn’t have made your legs walk through the door. It was worse than when you’d been stood at the gates of New New Home and thought about leaving before turning back in the last moment.

This time it wasn’t you who got the chance to turn back on a decision. It was Frisk and the teenager was the most stubborn and determined human you had ever met and you doubted they ever felt unsure in their decisions like you did.

Upon seeing only the counsel members present as well as Professor Goodwin, your heart clenched as you realized you hadn’t properly said goodbye to so many: Napstablook, Mettaton, Grillby, Mont, Dogamy, Dogressa and the Royal Guards. But there would always have been lose ends, so you just gridded your teeth and bore it.

“how are you feeling, kid? strong and good?” Sans asked as Frisk and Toriel arrived.

Frisk started signing to Sans while Toriel unexpectedly walked up to you.

“I hope you will excuse my forwardness, miss Doe. But I wanted to thank you for being respectful of the vote, despite not agreeing. This means a lot to us monsters.”

You weren’t sure you were ever going to get used to Toriel speaking to you in that gentle but yet authoritarian tone.

“I respect democracy. But I just think it is a very big decision to make for the whole of the world. Before, you had your own community, where you were the queen but now you share the Earth with a lot of other beings. It is your prerogative and I realize the humans will never really know what even happened but still… However, I understand that you want your husband back.”

“Asgore is not my husband anymore,” Toriel responded.

“Perhaps not on paper but you have been grieving him like a widow, haven’t you? I mean no disrespect, Toriel, but sometimes people in our life remain important even if there has been distance between you at some point.”

“You would think you had a mate yourself, speaking like that,” Toriel commented.

“No,” you said with a melancholy smile, “but I pay attention and listen. And it has been a pleasure to get to know the former queen of monsters. I have learned more being here than I would have thought I could in my lifetime.”

As soon as you finished speaking, Papyrus arrived. He had refused to be taken by one of Sans’ shortcuts because he didn’t want to be “carried around” by his brother. He instantly started chatting loudly with Frisk, and you were surprised that Papyrus seemed to perfectly understand Frisk’s sign language. You had never noticed that before.

Alphys, Undyne and Professor Goodwin were still by the equipment and monitor station and with Papyrus here everyone had arrived.

“Are you just going to stand around all day, or are you coming over here to reset, Frisk?” Undyne yelled, which made Frisk smile and giggle.

“you go ahead with toriel, frisk. we’ll be there in a moment.”

“SANS, WHY ARE WE STAYING HERE?” Papyrus asked and pointed between the three of you.

“you need to say goodbye to doe, pap. If we go back four years, doe will be living her life far away from ours.”

"BUT THAT’S NOT FAIR! SHE’S A FRIEND AND ONE OF US. CAN’T YOU JUST SHORTCUT AND PICK HER UP IN THE NEW TIMELINE? I KNOW YOU REFUSE TO TALK ABOUT IT BUT I KNOW THAT YOU REMEMBER STUFF, RIGHT? I’VE HEARD THE NIGHTMARES, SANS, AND YOU ALWAYS BABBLE ABOUT RESETS. WHY CAN’T YOU JUST DO THAT? WE DON’T NEED TO SAY GOODBYE.”

You felt tears well up a little in your eyes. Papyrus had just a naïve solution. If Sans appeared in front of your seventeen year old self you’d probably have a heart attack. Monsters had only been on the surface for around a year at that point and if a skeleton monster magically appeared, you weren’t sure what you’d do.

You weren’t even sure you’d believe him if he explained what had happened if he was even able to find you in the first place.

“Pap,” you said and pulled the tall skeleton’s focus over to you rather than on his brother. “It’s okay. It’ll be okay. We’re good. You’ve been like the best friend I’ve ever had. I love you.”

You were back in one of the famous bone-crushing Papyrus hugs and you hugged back with all of your might. Other than Sans, you were the saddest about losing Papyrus. He had become so dear to you and everything had always been so easy between you.

“Papyrus! Get your boney butt over here,” Undyne called. “Alphys says that we’re on a schedule!”

You were fairly certain that there had been no set schedule but you were happy for Undyne’s interruption anyway. If she hadn’t called Papyrus, you weren’t sure if he’d ever let you go. Your heart swelled.

At the request, you all walked over to the monitor where Goodwin and Alphys were wiring up Frisk again. They had insisted that they didn’t need the atmosphere chamber this time. You were still a little worried for their health.

Even with a healed soul, resetting the world in the Underground was a much smaller scale than setting the entire world back four years. But the determination was palpable in the air and Frisk looked unwavering.

“Alphys,” you said as you walked up to the dinosaur monster, who just looked up at you without even flinching. “I want to thank you for giving me a chance to work with you, despite your initial… hesitance. I have learned so much from watching you work and it has been a privilege working beside you.”

“Oh, h-human,” Alphys said and her hands started to shake as she extended one of them towards you.

You took her monster hand in yours carefully and shook.

“I-I’m sorry, I was l-like that when we m-met, I j-just…”

“Alphys, I didn’t blame you then and I don’t blame you know. I understand. Don’t worry about it.”

“You know what, punk? For a human working for the government, you’re pretty cool and tough. Sorry about the spear incident,” Undyne said and held up her fist.

For a moment you wondered if she was about to punch you, but then she moved so swiftly and you were trapped in her arms and her knuckles were rubbing over your hair in a teasing but affectionate way. You let out a startled laugh and managed to escape her.

“It’s fine, Undyne. You were just protecting Alphys and I got in the way. All’s forgiven.”

You felt a little stumped after that. You had talked to everyone here now, except for Sans and Frisk. You weren’t sure if there was anything more to say to Sans. You felt like you had had your proper and private goodbye last night.

“If we’re just about ready, you all need to step back,” Professor Goodwin said. “The monitor system is activated and we can follow Frisk’s health like before. Their soul values are still through the roof.”

You cast a glance back at Professor Goodwin. You hadn’t even met him four years ago and you wondered if you’d end back up in his class again. Perhaps you owed him a final word as well.

“Good to hear, professor. And thank you for everything too. For helping us here and for the class you taught. It’s been incredible to learn from you.”

“Miss, I do not do tearful goodbyes and this is not a goodbye. This is groundbreaking science. But I suppose… I was happy to have such an intelligent young woman in my class.”

You knew you weren’t getting more out of the academic. The rest of the monsters stepped back as instructed but you lingered by Frisk.

They moved their hands to ask you something and Sans spoke up from behind you.

“they’re asking if you’re okay with this? they don’t want to make you mad but they have to help their family.”

You smiled and let all the worry wash away from you for a moment. There was nothing more you could do. This whole thing was out of your hands now, even if it hadn’t been properly in your hand at any point. Frisk was doing this and your best position was to be supportive.

It might still be the right call. You had to believe that now.

“Frisk, I’m not mad. I could never be mad at you for trying to stop the war. I want it stopped more than anything and doing it preemptively is a very noble goal. I hope it works out. You are a very special human and you carry all the responsibility better than anyone else ever could,” you said and reached forward to place your palm on Frisk’s cheek.

“You can determine the future of our world.”

As soon as the words left your mouth, Frisk moved forward to hug you and you also felt the telltale crackle of magic from Sans. Frisk moved back to do the signs for: I will miss you.

“Don’t worry about me. You’re the real player here. Go do us proud.”

It took all of your willpower to step away from Frisk and stand beside the other monsters. Sans leaned in and placed an arm around your waist.

“i won’t let any of them forget you. we couldn’t have done this without you,” Sans whispered, so only you could hear.

You nodded and watched as Frisk took a deep breath and prepared to reset the entire world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahh!! It's going down next chapter. Frisk is gearing up to reset. Will they be able to do it? Will they go through with it? We will find out. Also, had anyone guessed that the title would be spoken and/or who would say it to whom? It's been planned for a while and I'm so happy that it's finally here. Also, the soul was okay! (though all you guys' theories about the hopelessness being transferred was so brilliant). And we got to see Sans' soul, like some of you guessed he wasn't being completely honest about it before, so it was technically possible. And bless Papyrus. My heart breaks for him in this chapter. He just wants to keep his friend. Ahh, my emotions! Saying goodbye to everyone. I'm not crying, I've just got space dust in my eye.
> 
> Next update will be in a week, on Sunday the 11th of March. Usual upload time is 8 PM CET.


	32. An Alternate Path

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frisk was all geared up to reset but something still wasn't right. Now she felt compelled to step forward and help, even if she wasn't sure if she wanted the reset to happen. But what other alternative did they have?

Life is all about choices. You might not realize it but you make choices every single day. You decided to get out of bed. You decided to go to work or school. You decided whether to turn left or right. You also get to decide not to do any of those things.

As you watched Frisk powered-up and the feel of determination in the air increased, you found yourself wondering why you had been stressing out about choices so often. There really was nothing to it but to try and if you failed, then you just had to get up and try again.

There wasn’t really a wrong choice because every single choice you made in your life was made on the background of who you were in that moment. It was your life and your decisions governed it.

If you started going down a path that you didn’t like, it was your responsibility to stop your treacherous feet and make them turn back around. You stood before a determined human teenager about to wind back every choice that you had made in the last four years and you still felt ambivalent about the whole thing.

But this was Frisk’s decision to make, thankfully not yours.

That was until the monitors started beeping with warnings again and your heart jumped into your throat.

“What is going on?” Toriel demanded from Professor Goodwin.

“I’m not sure… It’s not like before. Their heart rate is fine and the soul glows steadily but something isn’t quite right.”

“FRISK, TALK TO US! DON’T YOU DARE GET HURT, PAL!” Papyrus said.

Sans was already taking his hand out of yours and moving towards Frisk.

“buddy, you have to tell us what’s going on! and this time you stop before you release that monster repellent energy pulse, you hear me?”

Frisk brought up their arms with sluggish movements and started signing but the strain was evident on their face.

“they’re saying it feels too big. too much time has passed and so many events worldwide needs to be reset. even with a healthy soul and the magic back, they’re struggling to grasp it.”

“Nonsense! There’s nothing you can’t do if you just try harder. Hang in there, you little wonderful punk. You evaded all of us in the Underground. You can handle a little time winding. Just push harder!” Undyne shouted.

“F-Frisk, your values are still s-stable, you should be able to k-keep going,” Alphys added.

“Frisk, my dear, only keep going if you don’t get hurt. Do you hear me? You are more important than a reset! _Frisk_ ,” Toriel said and the mother-child relationship could be summed up just by her tone alone.

“Sans,” you said and Sans reluctantly looked back at you. “Maybe, I can help. Remember what you told me about the whole transferring determination and encouraging others? Let me help.”

“We don’t have time to get you wired up too,” Professor Goodwin warned.

You knew that but Frisk was struggling and trying so hard and you had been able to help them last time. It would mean that you had to get involved in going through with a decision you weren’t sure you approved of but life was made of choices, and some of them were really tough.

You didn’t want to live a life with regrets. It was too short for it and you had to help your new friend who was biting off more than they could chew alone.

“I’m going in,” you said and moved forward. Sans caught hold of your arm and his grip was iron and you wouldn’t be able to get out of it unless he let go.

“you don’t have to do this. i know you don’t want the reset.”

“We agreed to do this. And this is Frisk’s call. It was always going to come down to what Frisk wanted, Sans. And that is okay. I’ve learned that I can’t control everything in life, even when I want to. It’s fine,” you said and leaned in to press a kiss to his cheek.

He reluctantly let go of your arm and you moved towards Frisk, who still had their eyes closed and their hands now hang limply at their side.

“Frisk, I’m going to help you, okay? I’ll give you a boost or whatever. You’re far stronger than I’ll ever be but even the strongest people need a hand sometimes.”

You reached out for Frisk’s hand and took it in yours. It was like flames leapt up your arm but you clenched your jaw and bore the pain. A quick glance at your arm revealed that there wasn’t actual fire on your skin, even if it felt like that.

You took a deep breath and tried to focus you mind on being hopeful. Frisk would be able to do this. If it was a mistake, then they had to find a way to fix it later. Things would be okay. Frisk would be okay. You would be okay. Everyone in this room would be okay.

Suddenly, the world around you started fading away and you were worried this would be the end. At the surprise, you closed your eyes and when you opened them again, you were still holding hands with Frisk but everything around the two of you was black and quiet. However there were light just beneath Frisk’s feet which illuminated the small area just around you two.

Frisk was still covered in the wires and they were clutching onto your hand with all their might.

“Frisk?” you asked and your voice had a slight echo. “Where are we?”

Frisk opened their eyes and looked around and then moved their hands to sign and briefly let go of you.

“The void”

You had not expected to hear an actual voice accompany the movement of Frisk’s hands and it sounded young and innocent just like you might have imaged that Frisk would speak if they hadn’t been mute. However, it also had a mechanical clang to it. It took your head a little while to wrap itself around that one. But magic was involved and if this space was similar to where Sans came from and the place he used to make shortcuts through, then it wasn’t so farfetched that Frisk could somehow communicate audibly.

“Why are we here?”

Frisk signed again and the voice spoke along with the signs. “This is where I reset things. I go to this dark interface and go to save spots or all the way back to the beginning. It is different up here than in the Underground. I could not reach it on my own.”

It was still freakish to hear an ominous voice come from Frisk without them moving their mouth but you tried to focus on what they were actually saying.

“But you could get here with me.”

Frisk nodded and signed again. “You let me borrow your determination. Yours is special. It is different than mine. There is much less of it but it is tougher. So now I can reset, only…”

Frisk’s hands stopped moving and the voice quieted. You weren’t sure all of this wasn’t just some absurd dream but at the same time you had been around monsters and magic too long to just write this off.

“What is it, Frisk? You can tell me. I won’t be mad at you. I trust your judgment.”

Frisk’s shoulders slumped and they looked devastated before they started signing again.

“You should not. I have been evil before. I do not remember about it outside of the Underground but here I can recall it all. I am a horrible person.”

Frisk’s eyes started to well up.

“Frisk, you listen to me, okay? Sans explained to me what you had done. He remembers and he still loves you so much. You’re his family and he has granted you a second chance despite knowing your past. The other monsters would as well. You got swept up in the power you felt when you manipulate time and I think everyone would. It is too much, especially for a child.”

Frisk pursed their lips and then frowned before they picked up their hands and signed again.

“But then I should not do it anymore. Sans made me promise never to do it up here. He knew. He did not want me to become drunk on power again."

“That promise was made a long time ago, Frisk. Things change. The monsters all agreed that you should try to stop the bombing and the war. They want you to do this.”

Frisk suddenly looked angry and their hand movements became broader and sharper and by comparison the voice got a harsher tone.

“Sans did not want to vote! Mom is worried about me! My other friends are not sure either! It is all a mess! And you…”

Your breath hitched because Frisk looked downright terrifying right now.

“ **You** started it. You are the one who want to fix our problems the old fashion way. You want us to live with the tragedies because that is what you did! But I do not want to anyone to hurt! ” 

Frisk’s words cut right into your heart. You didn’t want that. You never wanted anyone to go through the pain and misery that had almost broken you. But you just didn’t think that rewinding time would solve anything.

Maybe it was because you had read a cosmic theory that the universe always corrected itself. And you had a feeling that saving someone’s life would just ensure that someone else would die instead. It was a depressing thought.

But at the same time you couldn’t place your faith in magic like Frisk could.

They were still just a kid in the grand scheme of things and perhaps so were you but you hadn’t grown up with magic inside of you. You had never felt it at your fingertips and been tempted to use it to solve your problems.

“I do not want anyone to hurt, Frisk! Least of all, you and our monsters friends. But death and tragedy is a part of life and you can’t avoid it forever. No matter how many times you reset, death will find you in the end. That is the conditions of being human. We are born and we die and all we get to decide is what we do with the time in-between. I just don’t think winding back is a sustainable solution.”

It was like the anger melted out of Frisk and they started to fall forward. Instinctively, you moved forward to catch them before they crashed on the ground in this black space Frisk had taken you both to. You were on your knees now, with Frisk cradled in your arms. They were crying now and their hands shook as they started signing again.

“I am sorry. I get weird when I am here. It does not feel real. But you are right. I cannot depend on resetting every time something goes wrong. The war is horrible and I want to stop it so badly, but if I do this, then I will never stop. Sans was right. I should not be messing with time. I almost got lost in the Underground and it was a miracle I came to my senses and managed to get them out. We cannot reset our world too. It is not made for magic of this kind and it’s too big.”

You were too baffled to even say anything as you held the wise and sad teenager in your arms while they signed and the ominous voice continued to speak.

“They need our own human type of magic. It needs humans who are willing to stand up for what they believe in. It needs humans who approach with kindness instead of malice. It needs humans who are determined to make it a better future. Resetting will not fix our problems.”

Frisk’s hands went limps and they closed their eyes and you instantly worried that they had just died right there in your arms. You moved your head closer to check for breathing but you couldn’t hear anything, so you started to shake their body and scream their name.

You felt frantic and out of place and you were clutching onto Frisk’s body, which was the only thing that felt real in this place of darkness. It was just black as far as your eye could see and you wondered if you’d be stuck here, holding onto Frisk’s lifeless body for an eternity.

But then it felt like the ground you were sat on evaporated and you got the sensation of falling and falling.

You sat up with a start and you had the feeling of just coming out of a nightmare. You looked into your arms to find Frisk still there but smiling and grinning up at you. They moved their hands to sign and you were relieved not to hear the ominous voice translate for them, even if it was more difficult to understand.

But Frisk definitely said something about home but the rest of the signs were lost on you.

The next moment, familiar skeleton arms was around you and you were pulled into Sans’ embrace. His entire body was shaking and you could feel the sweat on his skull. He’d been nervous.

“What the hell happened?” someone demanded to know, probably Professor Goodwin, but you couldn’t be sure because your ears still felt a little funny.

“Frisk, I am so glad you are okay, my child. You gave us a right fright, yet again,” Toriel said and you saw that Frisk had been swept up into her embrace.

“It is most p-peculiar readings,” Alphys commented. “Frisk, your values doubled again when Doe reached out to you.”

“Not to be a party-pooper, I’m thrilled the humans seem to be okay and all but why are you still here? Shouldn’t this be impossible?”

Frisk twisted around in Toriel’s arms to be able to sign to all of them, but mostly aimed at Sans who would likely have to translate for the ones that didn’t understand sign language.

“they decided not to reset,” Sans translated and you could feel how his entire body tensed since you were still in his arms. “they say it’s not right.”

“Why is it not right, Frisk?” Toriel asked. “I believe your ability to save and go back is what spared you true death in the Underground.”

Frisk looked scared and timid and suddenly they were looking to you for reassurance but you didn’t know how to offer it. Everything that had passed in that dark place already felt fuzzy and like a dream that was rapidly fading from your memory.

“frisk says that they don’t know why. they can never remember what pass in there but they made it to where they could reset, but for some reason they couldn’t do it.”

“Couldn’t or wouldn’t?” Undyne asked and her tone was a little accusatory. You couldn’t really blame her. The reset would have restored her sight and you didn’t need to have experienced it to know it must have been horrible to lose the ability to see the world around you, even if she had found ways to cope with it.

Frisk did the sign for: I don’t know. Everyone seemed to know that one without translation.

Why hadn’t Frisk reset? It had all been right there, hadn’t it? Gosh, it was such a pain to be unable to remember properly. But you recalled Frisk somehow speaking with a voice and they had been crying too before you came back. They were so sad because they couldn’t reset but what had been the reason.

“Sans,” you muttered and even in your hushed voice all eyes turned to you. “Frisk remembered. About the Underground. Everything, I think. And they said something about you being right.”

“R-Right about w-what?” Alphys asked.

“YES, IT DOES SEEM HIGHLY UNLIKELY SANS WOULD BE RIGHT ABOUT ANYTHING.”

“And what is this about what happened in the Underground?” Toriel asked and you could see how Frisk sunk down at the mention. They might not be able to properly remember but somewhere deep down perhaps they were still aware of their past alternate timeline actions.

Sans was still holding you in his arms, so you couldn’t look at his face but you felt how he seemed to almost shake with nerves. You knew he had understood what you meant. And now he was clearly struggling with how to cope with that.

“i told them not to mess with time up here. ever.”

“Why w-would you do t-that, Sans?” Alphys asked. “It is a-an extremely v-valuable tool!”

“I must admit, I am not keen on you giving orders to my child, Sans. I thought that was exactly what you didn’t want. You didn’t want to be Frisk’s parental figure, yet you command them not to use their powers?”

You finally stepped out of Sans’ embrace but took his hand to keep you connected. He looked about ready to bolt and you had a feeling that if you let go he would just shortcut out of here and that would not be beneficial for anyone.

“BROTHER, IF YOU COULD JUST EXPLAIN IT, I’M SURE WE WOULD ALL BE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND. YOU DO NOT NEED TO KEEP ALL OF THESE SECRETS,” Papyrus said and he was speaking so gently like he was afraid Sans might snap. It was nothing of their usual taunts now.

Papyrus was smarter than he let on. He had confessed as much when you’d tried to say goodbye to him before Frisk was about to reset. He knew about resets at least a little and he knew that his brother remembered.

“it’s for your own good. you don’t want to know. pap, please. it’s bad, okay?”

“SANS, IF YOU JUST…”

You saw Sans’ eye flash blue and the next moment every monster and even Professor Goodwin was a light blue light that kept them trapped in place. You found that you could move around and Frisk’s face turned into a determined frown as they stepped forward too.

“you don’t understand. okay? why can’t you just trust me?”

“If you don’t release me this instance, bone boy, then I’m breaking every single bone until you’re almost dust!” Undyne bit out.

Sans wasn’t thinking clearly and as usual, he was reacting with his powers, as he did whenever he felt moved into a corner. He didn’t want to tell Frisk that they had killed all of their friends and all monsters in the Underground. Despite his inability to commit to Frisk as a father figure, he loved that teenager so much and you knew that he just wanted to protect them.

Frisk walked up to stand right in front of Sans and started signing with passion. Their hands moved with precision and anger and Sans watched them carefully but he didn’t attempt to speak to translate for the other monsters who couldn’t see what Frisk was signing.

You couldn’t keep up with all of the signs either but you could see how the resolve started to drain out of Sans. Frisk often had that effect on him.

“sorry,” Sans said and released his friends.

Predictably, Undyne conjured up a spear, let out her battle cry and started charging towards Sans, who simply made a shortcut the last second and evaded but Undyne kept running and embedded the spear into the wall.

“I swear, your little bastard,” Undyne grumbled as the spear evaporated but the hole in the wall remained.

“Undyne, honey, r-remember what we said about fighting in the l-lab?” Alphys asked.

“Not to do it,” Undyne mumbled and crossed her arms and settled for glaring in Sans’ direction.

“it’s not my place to tell this story but i’ll explain what you need to know,” Sans said and sighed deeply as he shoved his hands into his hoodie. “in the underground, frisk didn’t only have save points. they could go back to when they first fell down and start all over. and they did. you guys only remember this last run when we got out. frisk was a true pacifist in this one but it wasn’t always like that.”

Frisk was watching Sans with a scared expression on their face. You walked up and put an arm around them without a second thought.

“WHAT HAPPENED?”

“pap, trust me on this one. it’s better for everyone if you don’t know. you all know how magic can corrupt monsters. you all saw what it did to gaster. it can be dangerous.”

Frisk ran over and grabbed a whiteboard and started writing.

 _I’m sorry, everyone_ L

“My child, it is okay,” Toriel said and put a clove on their shoulder.

“Frisk,” you said and the teenager looked up to you.

This world had entrusted them with too much at too young an age. Your heart broke for them yet again. Everything from that dark place was difficult to remember but you knew that Frisk had been the one to make the decision not to reset. You hadn’t even tried to influence them because you had already given up control on that.

Still, you couldn’t say that you weren’t happy that they had had a change of heart. And you were sure that they had been able to remember things across the different timelines when they were in there. If they had recalled the horror that Sans had described to you, then it made perfect sense that they would do everything to avoid turning into that demon creature anew.

“It does not matter what you did in other lifetimes. It matters what you do with this life that you have right here. You are still your own person. You get to call the shots and make the choices, okay?”

Frisk sniffled but then nodded determinately and wiped the board to write something again.

_We cannot reset. It won’t solve anything. There will_

_just be another war if we don’t fix people’s mindset_

As Frisk turned the whiteboard around, you felt pride in your chest. You knew they had said something inspiring while it was just the two of you but unfortunately you couldn’t recall the details.

Frisk put the board aside and started signing, only to Toriel.

You caught that they were apologizing and then something about saving before they spelled out what must be Asgore’s name.

Toriel started crying and then fell on her knees to hug Frisk to her chest.

“It’s okay, baby. It’s not your responsibility to get him back. And you are right. I never thought about how dangerous going back might have been. I just wanted things to be good again. You are wise beyond your years, little human.”

“B-But do you really think the h-humans will even listen t-to us? T-They still have that k-kill or capture on sight protocol,” Alphys said and she suddenly seemed to be back to her human skeptic ways.

“If I must say something,” Professor Goodwin said and you had almost forgotten that he was here too. “The humans are scared, just like you. We have a bad habit of reacting poorly to the things we do not understand, especially if those things are more powerful than we feel. But this whole thing has been blown out of proportions and people have been ill-informed.”

“I’m not sure if I trust them either,” Undyne said. “They far out-number us, even if we are superior.”

“BUT WE KNOW THAT HUMANS CAN BE NICE, RIGHT? ALL THE HUMANS WHO COME TO STAY HERE GET THAT WE MEAN NO HARM. WE JUST WANT TO BE PART OF YOUR WORLD. IF WE COULD JUST EXPLAIN IT TO THEM, THEN SURELY THEY MUST SEE REASON. HUMANS ARE FAIRLY SMART.”

“T-They are also c-cruel at times, P-Payrus,” Alphys added and then seemed to remember that three humans were presents. “N-Not you t-three, of c-course!” she added while a blush rose to her cheeks.

Sans was been very quiet about the whole thing but you could tell that he was listening.

“We cannot forget that they attacked us when we were negotiations citizenship. It was a peaceful meeting. The humans tried to kill our counsel and then declared war on us for being cold-blooded murders,” Toriel said.

She wasn’t wrong. It had been a horrible thing but hardly any humans actually knew that had gone down. They still thought it was the monsters that had planted the bomb to kill head of states. The monsters needed to be reminded of the perspective from most of the human population.

“The worst part of the whole thing is that most humans don’t know what’s going on,” you explained and found yourself in the center of attention yet again. “They are being lied to. They don’t have all the facts, frankly most of the information they do have isn’t factual at all. They think we had no choice but to enter this war. They don’t think of you guys are as complex or intelligent beings. They still think of you as animals despite the fact that you share our language. They think dedicated human soldiers are all bringing monster deaths mercifully. It’s presented as if you’re just a bunch of dangerous and rabid animals… and what happened to them? They get put down. That’s how most humans feel about you. It’s happened with animals before; they would get banned or euthanized simply for their breed, no matter if that specific dog or whatever had ever done anything aggressively. We’ve seen what prejudice, racism and now specism can do. It makes you think it’s excusable to go after someone just because of who they are. It’s not right but I have hope that most humans would see reason if they were given the chance.”

“BUT HOW DO WE GO ABOUT SHOWING THE HUMANS THAT WE JUST WANT TO BE FRIENDS?”

“we tell them that we want to end the war,” Sans said.

“T-That sounds rather r-risky. W-Why would they believe anything w-we say?” Alphys reminded everyone. “I-I’m still not sure of t-this.”

“We do have a lot of human allies,” Undyne said. “All the humans who decide to stay here after the three months and the people who leave and remain loyal despite having to hide it not to be marked as monster sympathizers.”

Toriel looked a little confused at that information and you wondered how much she had been let in on things since she woke from her coma.

“IF METTATON WAS HERE, HE WOULD SUGGEST A TELEVISED EVENT. WE HAVE A FEW JOURNALIST HUMAN FRIENDS, DO WE NOT? IF WE COULD TALK TO THEM AND HUMANS COULD SEE ON TV THAT OUR INTENTIONS ARE CLEAR!”

Professor Goodwin cleared his throat. “I might be able to get you something even better. The room where the bombing took place was under surveillance. Obviously, the camera got destroyed in the explosion but it was automatically saving the footage to a remote POCAM location.”

Your heart sank.

“But we deleted all the POCAM files,” you reminded Professor Goodwin.

“Yes, you did. But… I have friends everywhere and last year I got a hold of the file and made a copy for myself. I had a feeling that it might come in handy.”

The room crackled with magic and Goodwin started choking on air.

“you’ve had that this whole time?”

“Sans, calm down,” you said and the faint blue glow around Goodwin’s throat disappeared.

It still look him a moment to be able to speak.

“I did not bring it up,” he said and eyed Sans with a mix of anger and fear, “because it was my final bargaining chip if I should ever get into trouble with monsters or humans. Besides, since you just wanted to reset time, so it wasn’t relevant. Also, if you expect the humans to trust that you wish them no harm, almost crushing someone’s windpipe is not a good start!”

“You’re fine. Stop being a baby,” Undyne said to backup Sans.

“Doe here is convinced that you lot is no more dangerous, even if you have the ability to use magic. You need the majority of the human populations to believe that but most importantly, it needs to be _true_. You cannot let your temper get the best of you in negotiations. You’ll just make things worse,” Goodwin said.

You had never heard anyone speak to Sans like that before and for a moment you wondered if it would make the skeleton monster snap. But to your surprise Sans sighed and extended his hand.

“you’re right. i owe you an apology. but for the record, i do not take kindly to information being withheld.”

“NO, THAT WOULD BE QUITE INFURIATING. WOULDN’T IT, BROTHER?”

Instead of being mad, Sans just laughed at Papyrus' comment as he shook Professor Goodwin’s hand.

“i get it. no more secrets. and no reset. just convincing the entire human race that the monsters that crawled up from the underground and the monsters they have been taught to fear, actually just want to live in harmony. peace of cake.”

You smiled as you caught the subtle pun and then you walked over to Sans and put your arm under his.

“It’s the truth, Sans. And we are all determined to get the truth out there. It’ll be okay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been a little nervous about this chapter because of Frisk communicating audibly. Hopefully it came out okay? It was just a much better way for the two of them to communicate in the void. What did you think of the font? Also, I hope you like the reset decision. I know some of you said that you weren't sure and a limited few wanted a reset but I was happy to see a lot were against the reset, like what our dear reader is here at the very end. There's only a handful of chapters left at the moment, it's planned to be 35 chapters. And speaking of chapters, I am running out of pre-written chapters and I'm so busy at the moment, so I wanted to warn you that I might not be able to keep up with my weekly upload schedule. However, I will try my very best to do it. Let me know your thoughts on this chapter. 
> 
> Next update is the last pre-written one, so that one will go up on schedule, which is on Sunday the 18th of March 2018 probably at 8 PM CET.


	33. A Reflective Moment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There was so much that they needed to get done but she needed a moment to just reflect on everything that had happened. Opinions on the decision didn't outwardly appear divided but she still worried. However, a retreat to Sans' office and a long-overdue conversation might help things a little.

You all decided that it was a good idea to get started right away. The monsters needed to reach out to their human allies, specifically some of the journalists who had surrendered and learned about monsters and then left later but stayed quiet about their findings until now because they feared what they had to say wouldn’t get past the propaganda. You had a feeling those journalists had been just waiting for something to give them an opportunity to say what was really going on.

It was horrible to know that most of humanity was being fed false information about the monsters and that the whole war might have been avoided if the human government had been more forthright instead of blaming the people who were different than them.

Alphys said that she might be able to modify some of her old software to be able to hack into public screens the world over. If you needed to get your message out, it needed to be in a format that wouldn’t be interrupted and cut off until you got the opportunity to fully explain what had happened. You would also be able to show footage from the bombing and how the bomb had originated from beneath Asgore’s seat.

Mettaton had instantly volunteered or more so insisted that he be the host. He was ecstatic at the possibility to get back up on the screen, even in this serious matter. His antics were a breath of fresh air as all the planning and discussion made your head spin.

Sans sent you sideway glances and you could see that he was a bit worried about your condition. Toriel had demanded to take Frisk home to rest after the whole ordeal, even if the teenager had protested.

You were still trying to wrap your head around the fact that Frisk had somehow transported the two of you to a magical interface where they had knowledge of all the alternate timelines. It was such a bizarre thing.

The monsters had initially seemed to respect Frisk’s choice but you could see that some of them hadn’t quite fully accepted it. After all, Undyne would remain blind and Alphys might never regain her obsession with humans and how she used to trust them without restraints. Papyrus would never get his real hand back and Asgore would remain dead.

You were very thankful that Frisk had been the one to make the choice in the end but you also worried it added pressure onto their already burdened shoulders.

“DOE, YOU LOOK RATHER TIRED. DO YOU NEED TO GO HOME AND HAVE A REST?” Papyrus asked after you finished seeing Sans send off Dogamy and Dogressa with instructions how to reach the journalist allies.

You tried to smile at Papyrus to reassure him and your lips definitely twisted upwards but you weren’t sure if you were really smiling. You still felt a bit odd, after your out-of-body like experience.

“I’m fine, Pap. Just a little tired.”

“YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER TO TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF. IF FRISK NEEDS TO REST, DO YOU NOT NEED IT AS WELL?” Papyrus asked, clearly not eased by your attempt at a smile.

“I’m older,” you said but you knew that didn’t really matter but you didn’t want Papyrus to worry about you. You could also sense eyes on the two of you and turned your gaze lightly to see both Sans and Professor Goodwin observing you.

“AGE SURELY DOES NOT NEED TO DICTATE HOW MUCH REST YOU NEED! JUST LOOK AT SANS! HE IS THE OLDER BROTHER AND IF YOU WERE TO BELIEVE HIM, HE NEEDS MUCH MORE SLEEP THAN I, THE YOUNGER BROTHER, DOES!;”

You cracked a more genuine smile at Papyrus’ comparison and leaned over to place a hand on Pap’s ulna and radius.

“I’ll make sure to go home and take a powernap or something, Pap. I promise.”

“i’ll take you back in a moment,” Sans offered. “as soon as pap and i talk to undyne about diversion of labor and potential guards for the event. come on, bro. let’s do that.”

“OF COURSE!” Papyrus agreed and walked over to Sans. “AND I WILL BE PART OF THE GUARD. AND NO, SANS, I WILL NOT HEAR NO FOR AN ANSWER.”

Papyrus kept talking insistently as he and Sans walked away and you saw the backs of the two brothers retreating and you watched with a little private smile. You had thought that they were so very different when you met them initially. Different physical bodies and very different personalities but they had some shared characteristics that only became obvious when you properly got to know them.

They cared deeply for each other and anyone they considered a friend. They had made a family just the two of them from a young age and as a consequence, they were quick to embrace people who did not have a family and take them into theirs.

Professor Goodwin walked up to you with a contemplative look on his face and your headache seemed to increase. Despite your reassurances for Papyrus, your head had been killing you ever since you came back to the real world after what happened with Frisk. You were sure it would subside soon but you weren’t really feeling up for another discussion where you had to defend the monsters to Professor Goodwin.

“Your interactions with those two skeletons are rather fascinating, miss. I would not think that monster-human relations could reach that type of… intimacy and understanding under such a relatively short period of time and considering how you initially met.”

You could hear in Goodwin’s tone that he was wearing his analytical glasses and he was looking at your interactions through an academic lens, so you weren’t surprise by the next thing he said.

“It would be very interesting to document.”

You knew that Sans had granted him permission to publish anything he might learn by being here in the laboratory with you all and again you wanted to slam his thick skull into the wall and probably only feel a little guilty about it. He should never agree to something like that, even if you hoped that Professor Goodwin would stand by his ethics.

“You and I both know this whole thing has numerous interesting and groundbreaking research opportunities. Time and space can be manipulated, monsters have proper scientists and intelligent to match or even out-match that of humans, and a dozen more. Why are you so interested in the tiny role that I play in all of this and how I engage with the monsters?”

Professor Goodwin hummed and readjusted his glasses.

“If you think you are unimportant in this story, you are severely mistaken. You might be able to lie to yourself and say that it was Frisk who is the main player but I would counter that argument. You were the reason that Frisk was even found and the conduit that connected them with their powers. You might not have been the person who made the choice but your imprint and voice is all over this space. I remember you well from my lectures and I hear fragments of things you have said before when the monsters speak. What you have done here is unique and important. It deserves to be studied and documented.”

You had never really thought about it like that before. You weren’t sure you wanted that kind of responsibility. But you didn’t agree with everything Professor Goodwin said.

“You’re wrong. Some things should not be studied and yes, I say that as an academic who is extremely interested in the field of monster research. There are things that I have learned that should never be studied by us humans and distributed amongst our peers. And my relationship to the monsters and Sans in particular is not a subject to be studied.”

“Your partner did allow me full freedom to publish any findings,” Goodwin reminded you. You frowned a bit at his address of Sans.

“Yes, but I will remind you that you still have to adhere by your own ethics of what is okay or not. As your former student, I request that we do not become a subject for you to study in that regard. And I think it will be wise for you to keep the bond with the monsters strong, so that you’ll be allowed to work _with_ them in the future rather than just publishing whatever you can make on your own and then have them turn their backs on you.”

Goodwin smiled genuinely and you were very thrown off by it. He had kept a neutral face and observed with those calculating eyes but now it looked like he softened up.

“There she is. My star student. I like to push you to make you say what you really think. And I respect you, if it needs to be explicitly stated for you to comprehend. And while I do think interpersonal relationship between monsters and their human allies are a fascinating field of research, you are correct that I care much more about building a working relationship with the monsters, Doctor Alphys in particular. I have been letting myself get caught up in this as a research opportunity and a power game with the monsters, because I didn’t understand them properly. But you’ve helped me see that they are more than I could imagine. I want to thank you for expanding my horizon. I have no doubt you will excel in whatever you decide to do.”

Goodwin reached out his hand and you took it, more out of instinct than anything else. You were so baffled by his words. This past week, you had been slightly worried about your idea of bringing him on, despite his expertise. With the revelation that he had a copy of the tape from the bombing in itself was enough to justify his presence but you hadn’t known that when you had first suggested that you bring him on board.

He had always seemed to be behaving more like an unemotional academic than a compassionate human. But monsters were scary and odd to be around and even you had needed some adjustment time before figuring out what they were all about.

“Err, thank you, Professor Goodwin.”

The man shook his head. “I am the one who is thankful, miss. You have granted me the lesson of a lifetime.”

With that Goodwin walked away and you felt the fatigue hit you anew. You sighed and looked around on your surroundings. The layout of the laboratory was so familiar now and you walked up to the walkway that overlooked the lower parts of the laboratory and leaned on the railing as you observed what went on below you. There was so much stuff to be done for the televised event.

You would have to decide on a location, probably outside of New New Home because it would be too dangerous to transport a whole hoard of journalists in here without arising suspicion from the people monitoring the city’s borders. Sans could technically shortcut them in here but not all humans might feel comfortable with going through the void.

You would have to get into contact with all the human allies. You mentally added that you wanted to ask about locating Hannah and Madelyn from POCAM. Alphys had confirmed that they had left the facility and gone underground after the whole scandal but you wondered if they could be located. They were new allies and they had inside knowledge of POCAM, which gave them a lot of credibility.

There would need to be a speech, maybe several speeches to get the message of peace across to humanity. You would have to decide who should speak and who shouldn’t and who would write the speeches and what they needed to focus on to have the biggest impact.

And there should be technical support for Alphys somehow and…

“i thought we agreed you needed rest, right now you’re looking like you’re trying to solve a math equation,” Sans said and walked up behind you and hugged you close to his chest.

It was such a comforting action and you smiled widely as you realized that this would stay. Time wouldn’t be resetting. All that you and Sans had experienced would still exist and both of you would remember.

You hadn’t been willing to vocalize it but you hadn’t wanted to lose him.

It had hurt just thinking about it and speaking it out loud had been unthinkable.

“I’m just thinking,” you said to answer his question. “We have a lot of work to do.”

“you don’t, at least not right now. i’m under no illusion that you’ll get on this like ketchup on a white t-shirt in no time but you went through a lot. do you even remember it?;”

You shrugged. “Vaguely. It’s getting fussier by the moment. But I do know that Frisk was speaking audibly somehow and… they knew about the other timelines. In that place, Frisk seemed to have access to that knowledge somehow. They were so remorseful, Sans.”

Sans sighed, you couldn’t hear it audibly but you could feel it where your back rested against the front of his ribcage.

“they’re a good person. they are.”

You weren’t quite sure if Sans was saying that to convince you or himself.

You let your eyes fall on the people beneath you. Alphys and Undyne were talking in a corner. Professor Goodwin was sorting through papers. Papyrus was barking out orders to the Royal Guards.

“They won’t hate Frisk, right? For not resetting?”

It was something that had been nagging you for a while and you knew you had to ask.

“no, they couldn’t hate frisk.”

“They all had very good reasons for wanting a reset. Well, perhaps they will blame me instead if they must assign blame,” you said. You would rather take any possible dissatisfaction than Frisk having to bear it.

“you enabled frisk but no one thinks you made the decision,” Sans assured you. “i doubt anyone could make frisk do anything.”

“I know. It was Frisk’s call. I never wanted to take that choice away from them but I know that things might have been different if it was some human other than me that was able to kick-start their magic. I told them my opinion. They knew how I felt about it.”

“hey,” Sans said in a gentle voice and pulled you by your shoulders slightly, so that you turned around to face him and leaned on the railing with your back instead.

“What?”

“you just gave frisk all the facts to make an informed decision, okay? you did the right thing. it’s not fair to withhold any of the aspects or opinions from them.”

You raised an eyebrow at that and Sans snorted when he realized the irony in his statement.

“yeah, i know. it sounds bad coming from me who don’t like telling people things. i know. you must be rubbing off on me… or something.”

“But you think they’re actually on board with this, or are they just doing it because it’s what Frisk decided?” you asked in a more serious tone.

“perhaps they would feel different if you did that speech again. it was what i had needed to hear. it was a perspective and valid points that i was purposely ignoring.”

“I could never recreate that speech,” you said and grabbed onto stings on Sans’ hoodie and twirled them in your fingers. “I was fueled by suppressed rage when I snapped and said all of that.”

“shame, it might have been just what they needed to hear to be reminded of the disadvantages of resetting.”

“Darlings!” Mettaton announced loudly and you had no idea how he had managed to sneak up on you so quickly and his announcement voice made you jump into Sans’ arms as your heart almost jumped out of your throat.

“mettaton!” Sans hissed as his arms had wrapped protectively around you. “why so loud?”

“Oh, Sans, that is my nature, you know that by now! But I couldn’t help but overhear what you were talking about! Or well, I might have been eavesdropping. Either way, I have the solution to your problem! Because I checked my equipment and your little speech to Sans was captured on the main camera!”

First, you were so confused but then you recalled how Sans had pulled you and Frisk aside to a secluded room, which had been occupied by filming equipment but you hadn’t thought that anything had been turned on!

“we were recorded?” Sans almost growled. “if you watched that, i…;”

“Of course, I did. I am a simple monster, Sans. And Doe, I must compliment you on your eloquence. Your words really pulled at my heart wires. I have already pulled the footage because I think Sans is absolutely right, the others need to see this! It’s like a little home movie night. You get to be the star of the movie, even though I did of course record a little introduction to spice it up a little. Exciting, isn’t it?”

Exciting wasn’t the word that you would use. You had almost forgotten what you had said to Sans back then. It felt like such a long time ago and you had just been venting. You had spoken about your family, hadn’t you? Did you really want all the monsters to see that?

“we don’t have to show it if you don’t want to or don’t think that it’s a good idea,” Sans assured you.

“But Sans, I…”

“can it, metal bucket. it’s her call.”

You were so freaking tired but if Sans and Mettaton both thought it was a good idea and they liked what you had said, it might be a way to help the monsters understand why Frisk might have made the call.

“Okay,” you agreed. “Fine. We show it to the others.”

Mettaton started clapping his hands together and it gave off an odd metal clang. Somehow, his excitement was contagious.

“But not right now,” you added and Mettaton’s whole demeanor faltered. “Everyone is running around doing errands. Frisk needs to be there as well and right now they’re sleeping at home. And I’m having trouble remaining upright after that whole ordeal too, so I need a serious nap.”

Just as you finished speaking, a yawn overtook you and that seemed to gain you sympathy for Mettaton who had been looking a little perturbed a moment before.

“I suppose that will have to do. 8 o’clock tonight will be the premiere. I will make sure to let everyone important know about it! It will be a splendid affair.”

With that, Mettaton strutted off.

“you’re really okay with everyone seeing that?”

“Shouldn’t I be? Did I have something in my face the whole time?” you said, joking tone in your voice to lighten the mood.

“no,” Sans said and pulled you into a proper hug and stroked up and down you back with his fingers, close to your spine. “you looked fierce. shortcut home?”

You shook your head. “I know it’s not far away from here and we could make it back and forth in an instance but I don’t want to be away from the laboratory. I’ll just find a sofa somewhere and crash out.”

“you could take the one in my office,” Sans offered.

You were confused to a beat. Sans had never mentioned having an office in the laboratory but it was a big place and despite how much time you had spent in it lately, you knew you hadn’t seen all of the rooms. You knew Alphys had a big office; probably the main one of the whole laboratory and that Professor Goodwin had taken up residence in one of the guest offices. Of course, it made sense that Sans had an office as well.

You felt a surge of curiosity.

“I’d love that. Thank you,” you replied.

Sans nodded and you felt the slight crackle of magic in the air but it stopped as soon as you lifted your hand to cup Sans’ cheekbone.

“We can walk, Sans. Even as big as the laboratory is, I think we can manage without needing a shortcut, lazybones.”

Sans’ grin widened just a smidgen under your palm.

“if you insist, don’t say i didn’t warn you though. it’s at the top floor.”

“This laboratory has elevators everywhere, Sans,” you countered and took his hand and moved towards the main elevator. He let himself be dragged along willingly.

The platform overlooking the lower parts of the laboratory was already pretty high up but there were a couple of more floors. However, as you tried to press the button for the top floor, nothing happened.

Sans leaned over to press his thumb down to the button for the top floor and now it lit up obediently and the elevator started moving.

“It’s protected?” you asked.

“yeah,” Sans said. “there’s only my office up here and then a load of storage but it’s where we keep any potential confidential material. there are hours where the laboratory is open to monsters and if any of them would feel inclined to go snooping then they wouldn’t get this far.”

“So only you and Alphys has access?”

Sans nodded just as the elevator doors opened into a hallways.

“storage that way,” Sans said and pointed to the right. “my office is over here.”

You weren’t sure what you had been expected for Sans’ workspace but it was almost a replica of his bedroom, though instead of socks there were papers everywhere.

Behind his desk was a plague that said: Creative minds are rarely tidy. You wondered who had gotten him that but it definitely fit in with the aesthetic of this place. You were mildly surprised when you spotted the sofa, which was an exact replica of the one in the skeleton brothers’ home.

“I feel right at home here,” you said earnestly. “And I’m not surprised that you’re messing in your workspace too.”

“i’m a simple guy,” Sans said and then you saw how his eyes moved toward his desk, half covered in piles of paper and folders. His eye sockets widened and he looked suddenly unsure.

The expression had you intrigued and you followed his graze to and upon closer inspection you saw that it wasn’t just piles of papers and folders sitting on his desk. Amongst them, easy to not spot sitting delicately between two tall piles of papers, was an Echo Flower.

A glass dome covered it and it reminded you of the fairytale of Beauty and the Beast, only this was a blue flower from the Underground rather than a rose losing its petals as the beast prince lost his chance to regain his humanity.

For a moment you considered if it could be a coincidence that it was an Echo Flower and perhaps Sans just liked flowers, despite having no other flora in his office or at home. But if that were the case, why would he have the flower enclosed, even if it possibly didn’t need oxygen like a human flower did?

“Is that…” you started to say and moved towards the desk. Sans was faster, which was unusual for him and he blocked you off before you made it to reach out and touch the glass covering the flower.

“i forgot that was there.”

It didn’t offer up much of an explanation but based on how Sans was acting, you had a feeling you could guess what specific flower it was.

“It’s the one we passed when we were in the Underground a few days ago, isn’t it?”

There was the lightest dusting of blue across Sans’ cheeks and he looked almost abashed to be caught having held onto it.

“I thought you didn’t like to bring things from the Underground up here with you,” you said and your voice was still gentle because as much as you enjoyed winding him up, you didn’t actually want to make him feel embarrassed.

“i don’t normally, it’s just… i wanted to keep that. and it has to be enclosed or it’ll pick up new pieces of conversation and store those instead.”

I dawned on you that there might be a bigger significance in having the flower up here. It was something from the Underground, something magical taken away from its home of origin moved to this office in your world had been built before the bombing had happened. Maybe the flower would have somehow stayed up here, even with the reset and Sans would have had a way to keep your voice here. You weren’t sure if that could even work but you had learned that magic moved in mysterious ways sometimes and no one knew more about it than Sans did.

“Can I hear it?” you asked.

Sans didn’t look like he had been expecting that at all.

“you want to hear it?”

You nodded.

“okay, just… i know it’s silly but i quite like it, so don’t talk while the dome is up, okay? i’d like to hold onto this bit of recording.”

“I’ll be as quiet as a mouse,” you promised and even mimicked locking your lips and throwing away the key. Sans watched you intensely and you could see that his white pupils were shimmering slightly but you weren’t sure what he could be feeling emotional about at the moment.

He lifted the glass dome off easily and held it with one hand as he moved his other hand forward to gently stroke the petals.

“Sans is much softer and kinder than people think,” the flower spoke and you could hear the emotion in your voice as the recording was played back to you. You felt a lump in your throat because you hadn’t been able to admit it back then but you could hear it in your voice. You might not have been able to commit to it but there was no doubt now that you heard it played back to you.

“you’re ridiculous, doe,” the flower said in Sans’ voice and you caught the same undertones in his voice as you had in your own. You hadn’t been ready to pause an address it back then as you had been too amped up about touring the Underground but it was there, unmistakable and real in the recording of the flower.

Next your own laughter rang out, loud and clear and completely free. You sounded genuinely happy. Before you met Sans, you had forgotten what is was like to laugh like that. You had build up so many walls around yourself and you’d just put your head down and focused on work. You had been a shell and you had wanted to stay like that because letting people in meant that you left yourself open for hurt.

But it also meant that you left yourself shut off from love but clearly, something had changed as indicated by your unabashed laughter.

You loved him.

There wasn’t any more to it than that. Over the past month, you had slowly been falling deeper and more in love with the skeleton in front of you, who now moved to carefully put the glass dome back over the flower.

It felt impossible but you could feel the truth in the statement as the words resonated inside of your skull. The revelation made you feel weak in your knees because admitting it now was very different than before when everything might still have been reset.

Perhaps that was why you hadn’t been ready to realize it. You had been scared that you would lose him but now he was right in front of you and you were working on improving the current timeline instead of resetting it.

“I love you.”

The words made Sans’ movements freeze and you realized that he still hadn’t managed to set the glass dome all the way down and now he was just hovering with it awkwardly around the Echo Flower as he stared at you with widened eye sockets and shimmering pupils.

“you...;”

“I love you, Sans,” you repeated, louder and more certain this time.

Sans let the glass dome drop and it danced around the Echo Flower before finally slotting into place and you got an armful of skeleton monster.

He clung onto your body and you hugged him back with the same enthusiasm.

“do you mean it?;” he asked and your heart ached because he sounded so small and unsure and you felt furious at anyone who had ever made him doubt whether someone would mean such important words.

“Of course, I do,” you said and pulled back enough from the hug to take his skull in your hands and look directly at him. His hands trembled on your waist.

“ _I… love… you_ ,” you said and this time emphasizes every part of the sentence and took breaks in between.

“thank fuck because i’m pretty sure you’re the one who puts my soul at ease,” Sans replied and your eyes started welling up slightly.

Putting your soul at ease. A monster’s mate. Their version of I love you.

Sans had said it to you and you felt like your whole body sang.

“i mean, i love you too,” Sans clarified when you didn’t reply and he seemed slightly worried at your watering eyes.

“I know,” you said. “I know what you meant.”

You moved forward to press a kiss to his teeth. His hands pulled you closer to him and you almost stumbled but Sans caught you and moved the two of you to the big sofa in the corner of his office. Your heart was beating so fast and you could feel how all of Sans’ bones seemed to vibrate.

“I think I ruined your flower,” you said.

“no, you didn’t. you just overwrote it with a much more important recording,” Sans said and nuzzled close to your neck. “i love your laugh but i love the new words so much more. even if i don’t feel worthy of them.”

“Sans,” you said and he stopped moving and went stiff in your arms. You were on your back and he was practically on top of you and it felt like he had been trying to close the distance as much as possible. You wanted nothing more than to relish in the embrace but you needed to say this.

“Don’t ever feel like you aren’t worthy of love. I know there are reasons why you feel that way. I won’t pretend to know what you’ve been through but trust me when I say that you are worthy of love. Your family and friends love and respect you, they would all be devastated if something happened to you. I mean it very much when I say that I love you. I love you because of how you stand by your morals uncompromisingly. I love you because you care so much about everyone and try to protect everyone, even if it means sacrificing yourself. I love you because you are so much more than meets the eye; you’re kind, brave, patient, just and so much more. You fight with so much inside of your skull and yet you persevere with being this incredible person. I am lucky to have met you, do you understand?”

Sans’ whole body felt like it was vibrating and when he lifted his face from your neck, you could see the slight collection of blue at the bottom of his eye sockets.

“i will never be able to tell you how much you mean to me. not like you do.”

“You’re wrong,” you said and your voice was so gentle. “Words are not the only way to express something. Actions can do that too and you don’t have to worry about me knowing because I can feel it. My soul feels hot and present in my chest and I feel happy. I could hear it in the undertones when you called me ridiculous. You don’t have to find another way to express it because I see it, Sans. I see you and I know that you see me.”

“shit, you’re amazing.”

That made you laugh, much like the ridiculous comment had in the Underground.

“i can’t believe i almost lost this and i didn’t even know how much i would be losing. i’m so sorry, doe. i’ve been a stubborn bonehead about the reset and i didn’t realize how lucky i have been in this one.”

“It’s okay. Bad things happened in the past and they will probably happen again. A human life is full of bad and good stuff and we can’t live a life without hurt. No one gets to do that but the bad times makes you appreciate the good ones in a way you wouldn’t otherwise.”

“you really think that the humans will listen to us and agree to a peaceful end to the war?”

“I’m hopeful,” you said and snuggled closer to Sans and let your lips lightly graze his cheekbone. “I want to believe that the majority of my fellow humans will see sense when all the facts are represented to them. They have been forming opinions on biased and prejudiced grounds. It’s time they knew the whole story.”

“you might not have magic like me or frisk, but you do have a special brand of very human magic. you are determined to see change and you remain hopeful that things can become better. the belief is the first step to making the change.”

“We can do it, Sans. Like you said before when I said that you couldn’t know that things would be okay when Frisk reset… They have to be. They just have to be okay and we won’t accept any other alternative. This is our life and our timeline and we will turn it around. We simply have to.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look at that! I loved to strip it back a bit after all the action and just give them a peaceful moment. Thank you to the people who said that they wanted to see the Echo Flower later in the story. It was only incorporated because of you because I had naturally forgotten about it until you guys reminded me but it worked out so well in the end. Also, what did you think of the conversation with Professor Goodwin, I know some of you were a little wary of him. And finally those important words were spoken. Did you liked this chapter? And now I'm in the situation where I've run out of pre-written chapters :( Granted, the story only has 2-3 more chapters but there's a chance that I won't have the next chapter ready for next Sunday. I'll try to get it up on time or as soon as I can afterwards, but I want to take my time writing the ending of this story that I've loved creating. I know you'll understand and I'll try to keep you waiting as little as possible.
> 
> Also, I'm considering doing some bonus content to this story. Firstly, I would like to pick out specific scenes with Sans and show you guys a bit of his perspective. Could you let me know which scenes you'd most like to see? (The only one that I am most certainly doing is the one where the reader attacks Sans in An Unlikely Fight but I'd love to write the scenes where you really wanted to know what Sans was thinking in those moments). Secondly, I was thinking of doing a little short spin-off showing how Sans might meet the reader if Frisk had gone through with the reset - sort of an alternative ending. If that has any interest?
> 
> Let me know your thoughts on all of that and sorry for the long author's note.


	34. A Documented Stance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You had to show humanity what the monsters were really like. The televised event seemed like a good way to get the message out there and surprisingly many human allies had showed up to support that cause. However, things don't go exactly according to plan.

You had fallen asleep with an armful of skeleton and you could definitely get used to that. When your skin touched any of Sans’ exposed bones, it left you with a slight and pleasant tingling sensation. He radiated heat physically but mentally his presence also made you feel safe. You knew he didn’t have lungs but his ribcage still moved and pulsed and it was so comforting to feel it against your own chest rising and expanding as your lungs drew in breaths.

You fell asleep almost the moment you cuddled up next to him and let your eyes shut.

When you woke up, you instantly missed his presence and you sat up and rubbed your eyes. The light has been turned off in his office and looking out of the window, you could see that the sun was setting already. You had been covered with a blanket that you knew all too well. It was the one that had been on the sofa back at the skeleton brothers’ home. Undoubtedly, Sans had made a short-cut and fetched it for you so that you wouldn’t get cold when he left.

You had slept for much longer than you had anticipated but your body had clearly needed it. You swung your legs down and sat on the sofa and gathered your thoughts a little. Your eyes drifted to Sans’ desk and more specifically to the place, where amongst the huge piles of documents, the Echo Flower sat in its dome. You had recorded over the original message but Sans hadn’t seemed like he minded at all.

You loved him. You made his soul feel at ease and you were growing increasingly sure that your soul felt the same about him. It had seemed to hum in your chest when you had fallen asleep next to him.

You reluctantly left the blanket and the comfortable sofa behind and padded out into the hallway and took the elevator down to the main floor. The laboratory was uncharacteristically quiet and you considered calling one of the monsters when it dawned on you that you didn’t have any of their numbers. Did they even have phones? It had never been necessary before because you had just always been together or Alphys has supplied communication technology to help you keep in touch on missions.

The laboratory seemed almost eerily quiet and you walked with slow steps. When you noticed the clock on the wall said that it was around ten minutes past 8 PM, you suddenly knew where all of them would be. Mettaton had been quite adamant about the timing, so you headed towards the auditorium.

The door was open just a smidgen and you lingered in the doorway, and looked in at the screen and the backs of everyone’s heads. You and Sans were on the screen off center but nonetheless very much in shot.

It was surreal to watch yourself on screen. You looked different. These past months had changed you a whole lot. You noticed how you held your body, and you could see the tension and you could hear the frustration in your voice.

You had just wanted Sans to understand. You had just wanted him to consider your point of view. You had just wanted to step in and let everyone know that they might be making a mistake.

He understood now and he respected what you had told him, he had even thanked you for reminding him of the opposing view. The reset had been stopped and though you didn’t remember it clearly, you were fairly certain that Frisk had agreed with your notion that it was unwise to mess with time.

“I know we’re trying to stop the war but I don’t think going back in time is the way to do that. I know you want Asgore to be saved. I know you want Toriel to avoid the three-year coma that stripped away most of her magic. I know you want Undyne to be able to see. I know you want Alphys to still believe in humans and not be terrified of us. I know you want Papyrus to have his own real hand. I know you want Frisk to never have to go through all of this pain. But those things happened, Sans. Surely, you must know more than anyone that going back doesn’t change that. It still happened.”

Your voice rang out into the room loud and clear and you felt like your breath got caught. By not resetting, you had been part of the decision to condemn everyone to live with the trauma and grief that had followed the bombing.

None of the monsters had seemed to notice you but you felt the now very familiar surge as Sans’ magic was ignited for one reason or another. It had always felt like crackling, like before a thunderstorm. It was a flash of warning that something powerful could be released. It was something a lot of people would instinctively fear.

“You’re just trying to cheat the system by rebooting it. I know it’s tempting. I would like to be held by my parents again. I would like to never know grief and hopelessness like that. I would like to see if I had turned out better if I hadn’t lost everything at such a fragile age,” your screen self said and you felt your eyes burn.

You couldn’t get your family back. They were gone. It had taken so long to accept that and you knew you’d forever be marked by that personal tragedy but at the same time, you were proud of yourself.

“But that’s what it is… wishes. A desperate child’s wishes to turn back the clock. But my adult self, the person who was cultivated because of all of these struggles I’ve been through, says to stay determined, keep my integrity and always be kind. And turning back would be a huge dishonor to her.”

You felt your own words impact you in a way you didn’t think that they possibly could. You had said those things. They had been formed based on your thoughts, so they shouldn’t seem new to you but at the same time, you had been running on autopilot when you’d been talking to Sans back then. You’d been exhausted, angry and you’d felt like no one listened. Now everyone was listening.

Sans, Papyrus, Undyne, Alphys, Frisk, Toriel, Mettaton and you even spotted Mont and Napstablook as well as Professor Goodwin.

They were all listening to you now and Frisk had heard you out in the most critical of moments, right before they had to make the decision.

A loud sob made it way up your throat and obviously, that caused every single monster to turn around and Undyne even conjured up a spear and aimed it in your direction before realizing that you weren’t a threat.

Sans was staring right at you and if you weren’t mistaken you could see the slight color of tears at the bottom of his eye sockets. Frisk moved first and they charged through the room and threw themselves into your arms and almost make you topple over.

At the sheer surprise of it, you let out a startled laugh and then hugged Frisk back.

“I hope you do not mind that we started the show, darling,” Mettaton said. “But Sans said that you were resting and not to be disturbed.”

“It’s okay, Mettaton. It’s fine. It’s probably better. I just… I forgot a lot of the things I said, I guess. It was a very intense moment.”

Frisk pulled back from the hug and started signing rapidly but it made little sense to you when you still felt tried from having just woken up and then stumbled upon all of these emotions.

“frisk is saying that you were right,” Sans translated when he noticed that you weren’t following.

“I must agree with my dear child,” Toriel said and stepped up to you. “I think we all got so swept up in going back and trying to… fix things. I lost three years and when I woke up everything was different. I wanted to go back to the last place where things made sense but I can see what you mean. It is not fair for us to make that decision for the whole world. We need to fix our messes and live on through the tragedy. I do not like that I have to keep losing loved ones but I must not let the grief over those we have lost cloud the fact that I still have a wonderful family. Thank you for your sensibility.”

“Err… no problem?”

“I think… I might, perhaps I owe you an apology,” Undyne said and sounded uncharacteristically unsure. “I was a bit mad at you before. I thought you didn’t think about any of us. But what you said to Sans… You did think about us. You knew why we all wanted things to be reset.”

“Y-Yes. You c-considered our p-point of view and respected o-our reasons but w-we didn’t l-listen to yours. I-I am sorry for that t-too,” Alphys said.

“I WILL NOT APOLOGIZE FOR ANYTHING FOR I DID NOT THINK YOU FOOLISH. YOU WERE ALWAYS A SMART HUMAN. I MEAN YOU WOULD HAVE TO BE TO PUT INGREDIENTS TOGETHER LIKE THAT. AND YOU HELPED US. YOU MADE ME A HAND AND I LIKE IT EVEN BETTER THAN MY REAL ONE. THIS ONE IS MADE WITH YOUR LOVE AND MY BROTHER’S MAGIC. THAT WAY I ALWAYS HAVE A PIECE OF YOU TWO WITH ME.”

That got you crying anew and that seemed to trigger an instinctive reaction and you were swept up into a giant group hug.

Frisk signed and Sans was looking at you rather than them, but surprisingly Mont spoke up.

“Frisk says that this is the sort of sentiment that we need to use when we speak to the humans. Not about the reset but we need to show them our emotions. The human government will not listen to the monsters’ story but they will listen to the humans who have supposedly been captured by us.”

Mont was almost glued to Frisk’s side again as soon as they had stopped signing. You looked at how close the two of them were and you thought about yourself and Sans and you wondered how someone could think to interfere in your relationships, even if they might be interspecies ones.

But people undoubtedly would. Even if the war could be stopped and the monsters could gain citizenship, there would always be someone who didn’t approve of people straying away from the norm.

The discussion changed to who should be the speakers and a general sum-up of all the tasks that the different monsters had done while you were sleeping on the sofa in Sans’ office. Throughout the discussion, Sans stayed by your side and you leaned against him naturally and enjoyed the sense of calm you felt standing next to him.

Your soul felt a little lighter in your chest and you embraced the hopeful atmosphere that all of the monsters had adapted after hearing your speech. Mettaton and Sans had been right that it had been the final push that they needed to believe that humans could be changed and they should give this plan all that they got. They had needed your words to fully let go of the reset that they had been planning for years and gotten so close to.

“hey…” Napstablook said to you while Undyne and Papyrus were discussing who would take charge of the guard and plan where they should stand at the new location that you’d just decided on.

“Hmm?” you said and turned towards the little ghost monster who spoke in a low voice that only you could hear.

“i wanted to say… i’m sorry you lost your family… but you can stick with us. i know we’ll never be the same as your real family… but we believe in you. we will listen. we will help. you are one of us…”

The emotions were right back up in your chest and you had to raise your hand to your nose not to sniffle loudly and draw attention to the little private conversation.

“Thank you, Blooky. I appreciate that. To tell you a secret, I thought I lost the ability to open up and become vulnerable and let people in. I’m glad you guys proved me wrong.”

Napstablook usually looked so melancholy but you saw a small smile spread now. It was barely there, just a tiny rising of one side of the mouth but it was definitely there. You wanted to wrap the monster up in a hug but you had a feeling that you’d go right through them.

However, Napstablook seemed to sense your intentions and rose a hand towards you and you mimicked the gesture and felt a warm tingly when your fingertips made contact with the barely there physical being.

If someone as melancholy and pessimistic as Napstablook could actually smile at you, telling that you were part of the group and look hopeful, then things might be okay. They had to be.

The event was planned to commence after a week, and thus all of you were plenty busy with that or the other. You had worried that Alphys or the human allies network living outside of New New Home wouldn’t have been able to locate Hannah and Madelyn but they confirmed their presence just a day before and Hannah agreed to act as a translator for Frisk, so the monsters didn’t have to be the ones to translate.

It was unanimously decided that only humans would speak at the event, at Mettaton’s dismay. The robot accepted it, begrudgingly, when he heard you reasoning. Humans were taught that monsters were vicious and manipulative and you didn’t want anyone to argue or think that the monsters were making their human allies speak with threats or magic manipulation.

There was no such thing as using magic to coerce someone, Sans had assured you, but you remembered the rumors. Humanity liked to paint a very scary picture of the monsters but you wanted to change that.

You had decided on a small city, just a handful of miles outside of New New Home. It was mostly deserted because of the close proximity to Mount Ebott but it was a place mostly unguarded by POCAM and basically just left to fall apart with time.

It was perfect. The human allies network (or what POCAM would have called a group of treacherous monster sympathizers) had been taken into play. Apparently, every time a human left New New Home after surrendering and learning about the monsters and their history, they had been asked if they would support the monsters if the time ever came.

A lot of people wanted to and when Papyrus and Undyne had talked to all the humans currently residing in New New Home, everyone wanted to help as well. Some still looked skeptical about monsters but most of them were enthusiastic about getting the “truth” about monsters out there.

It was inspiring to see how many humans allies the monsters had gathered through the years while the general public knew nothing about it. It was always painted rather black and white. Either you were with the humans or you were a monster sympathizer. Nothing was ever as black and white as that.

On the morning of the event, basically all cars in the city were put into use and humans and monsters piled into them. Undyne and Sans had to go to distract the POCAM unit tasked with surveillance of New New Home, even if all the cars went through the Underground and the secret back entrance no one knew about. It was a lot of people to move, so it would be better to make sure the soldiers out there weren’t snooping around.

“Be careful,” you told Sans as he got ready to leave.

“meaning don’t kill anyone?” he asked and there was a worried edge in his voice.

You shook you head. “It means watch out for yourself, for Undyne and for the humans who doesn’t know better, Sans. We need them to trust us.”

“us, huh?” Sans asked and his grin widened.

If there were being drawn up sides and battle lines, you knew where you’d be stood, even if you didn’t want the black and white view at all. You leaned in to press a quick kiss to his teeth.

“Urgh, you’re worse than me and Alphys,” Undyne said and you had a feeling she would have been rolling her eyes if she could.

Sans just fixed her with a stare. “i beg to differ, remember when…”

Undyne suddenly looked flustered and she conjured up a spear and pointed it straight at Sans who didn’t finch, even as she poked the tip on his ribcage. “You want to finish that sentence?”

Sans chuckled. “no, you proved my point just fine.”

He batted away the spear and took Undyne’s hand instead, which she snorted at but it was a necessity if he were to shortcut them anywhere.

“Be safe, both of you,” you said.

“you too. go with pap to the location, will you?” Sans asked. You weren’t sure if it was because you should look after his brother or because his brother should look after you.

“Let’s go, Sans!” Undyne complained and Sans obliged and they blinked out of existence.

“I-I hope they are c-careful,” Alphys said from her workstation where she’d been watching you. She was staying in her laboratory with Professor Goodwin to help monitor the screens.

“They will be. They can both be reckless but they’re not stupid and they’ll look out for each other,” you assured Alphys who looked a little more at ease after that.

Part of you wanted to go over the plan one more time but you needed to pile into the cars with all of the others.

“DOE! YOU NEED TO MOVE. WE’RE LEAVING ANY SECOND,” Papyrus called from the doorway.

“Just a second, Pap. I’ll be right out,” you called back and then turned to face Alphys. “We’ll be okay, Alphys. You just monitor here with Goodwin and have the video ready to go live after the transmission. It’ll be okay. I know you might still not like us humans much but we are capable of learning from our mistakes.”

Alphys winged her hands. “I k-know. You a-are quite i-incredible. But I j-just feel b-bad. You’re o-out there and I-I’m always safely at a d-distance. It’s not f-fair.”

“No, it’s not but not in the way that you’re thinking, Alphys. You might not be out there in the action but you have to sit here and watch when things go awry and maybe you can help or maybe you can’t. You’re not privileged to be away from the action and we need you here. What you can do with your computers is invaluable for the success of this mission.”

Alphys looked like she was legitimately blushing and maybe sweating a little more. In one big leap, she was out of her chair and into your arms. You almost stumbled backwards but your arms wrapped around her instinctively, even if your heart was racing like crazy. You still hadn’t quite gotten used to these people’s tendency to tackle hug you, even if it was the first time it had happened with Alphys. You smiled. It seemed she had finally cast away her last reservations about you.

When she seemed to realize what she’d done, she pulled back and readjusted her glasses.

“S-Sorry, I-“

“Don’t worry about it, Alphys,” you replied with a smile. “I’m happy to accept a hug from you anytime. But I have to go, or Papyrus will have my head. But thank you, for trusting me and for letting me help.”

“We’re lucky to h-have you,” Alphys said with a smile.

“Right back at you, pal,” you said and took you leave. Like you’d expected, you found Papyrus waiting impatiently by his car.

Toriel was standing next to the car with Napstablook, who had promised to look after her as Lesser Dog had gotten into to a car to join the Royal Guards, Dogamy, Dogessa and a whole bunch of Froggits at the location.

Toriel and Frisk shared a prolonged hug and you could hear both of them sniffling when they pulled back. Toriel had wanted to come too but you all agreed that it wouldn’t be a good idea to have her out there in case something went wrong. She still had hardly any magic and she could only maneuver around with her cane for a short period of time before having to sit down.

Papyrus got into the driver’s seat and you sat beside him, while Frisk crawled into the back.

“I know you’ll make me so proud. You always do, Frisk. But please be careful, too. That applies to all of you. We cannot lose someone else,” she said and her grip on her cane looked like it could snap in half.

“DO NOT WORRY, MADAM. I WILL LOOK OUT FOR OUR HUMANS! BUT WE REALLY MUST GET GOING!”

Frisk pressed up against the side of the window and Toriel rested a cloved hoof there until Papyrus started the car and drove away. It felt oddly like going into battle, even if most of what you were doing was because of precautions. Ideally, you’d just record the speeches and have the human people react and then retreat to New New Home to consider your next step.

Even so, the magic nullifying disk that you’d modified to have opposite powers, rested heavily in your pocket. You had almost forgotten about it but you’d seen it out of the corner of your eye and something had prompted you to grab it.

Your thoughts started drifting and you almost had a heard attack when someone spoke from the back of the car.

“Can I come out now? It’s really cramped down here!”

You instantly recognized Mont’s voice but you hadn’t expected to see the armless monster in the back of the car. In fact, you were fairly certain that it had been decided that they shouldn’t come to the filming location.

“FRISK! CAN YOU PLEASE EXPLAIN WHAT MONSTER KID IS DOING IN THE BACK OF MY CAR?” Papyrus asked and looked a little unsure of how to act.

“C’mon, guys. I couldn’t just stay home. This is my fight too. My parents will understand. And I couldn’t let Frisk go along, could I?” Mont said and snuggled up to Frisk, who wrapped their arms around the monster.

You rolled your eyes to attempt to mask the fondness you felt. Mont wanted to be by Frisk’s side. It was quite sweet actually.

“YOU ARE LUCKY WE DON’T HAVE TIME TO TURN BACK AROUND. AND YOUR PARENTS CANNOT HEAR OF THIS. AND YOU BETTER STAY OUT OF TROUBLE.”

“Yes, sir,” Mont replied and Papyrus perked up a little at the formal address.

“I SUPPOSE IT ISN’T TOO BAD?” Papyrus asked you, in what was probably his attempt at a whisper but he never knew quite how to lower his volume.

“It’ll be okay,” you replied. Those words had become your mantra over the last week and you still desperately clung to them.

Driving into the abandoned town was a little unsettling but you were thankful that the journey went without any hiccups and you sent positive thoughts to Sans and Undyne who were probably busy messing with the POCAM guards observing the area outside of New New Home.

Both of them had a fighting spirit, even Sans despite his laziness.

You had been one of the last cars to leave and you’d not been prepared for the sight that met you as you pulled into the town’s square. The town might technically be abandoned but it was brimming with people now.

There were humans everywhere, at least a few hundreds - if not close to a thousand. You spotted the Royal Guards, Dogamy, Dogressa, Lesser Dog and several Froggits scattered around the outer perimeter, undoubtedly keeping watch for any signs of trouble. The more experienced guards, namely the Royal Guards and the dogs were keeping watch outwards while the smaller Froggits hopped around near the human crowds.

“Frisk is saying that they didn’t think there would be this many people,” Mont said, probably translating something Frisk had just signed from the backseat.

“I TOLD YOU THAT WE LIKE HUMANS AND HUMANS LIKE US. IN THE LAST FOUR YEARS, QUITE A FEW NEW FRIENDS CAME TO NEW NEW HOME TO LEARN ABOUT US AND THEY SAID THAT THEY WERE HAPPY TO HAVE SEEN HOW WE WERE REALLY LIKE.”

Papyrus parked the car and you got out. The crowd were still chatting amongst themselves, and you noticed how so many of them had banners with things such as “END THE WAR”, “MONSTERS ARE FRIENDS, NOT FOES” and “WE ALL WANT PEACE” and it warmed your heart.

Tall Papyrus drew in a lot of attention as the four of you moved towards the stage at the middle of the square where Mettaton was fidgeting around with one of the cameras. Alphys had spent several hours of the last week teaching Mettaton how to operate the cameras now that he couldn’t be in front of them.

“There you are, darlings. Almost fashionably late,” Mettaton called in greeting when you reached the stage.

Papyrus and Mettaton started discussing how long such a drive should take but you ignored it in favor of putting in your earpiece that connected you to the laboratory back home.

“Alphys? Professor Goodwin?” you said out loud and hoped that the connection went through.

“We hear you loud and clear,” confirmed Professor Goodwin. “Everything good on your end?”

You looked to Mettaton who was still chatting to Papyrus, now showing the skeleton the different camera angles. Things definitely looked ready.

“Yes, I think so. Any news on Sans and Undyne?” you dared to ask.

It was just a small mission but they were going up against POCAM guards and you worried that things might go awry.

“Last time they checked in, they had rendered almost all of the soldiers unconscious, but they just wanted to do another check. They should be with you soon and Alphys is just triple checking the code to tap into the television screens,” Professor Goodwin assured you. “Good luck, and reach out if you need any help or we’ll be watching and listening in.”

“Thank you,” you said and turned off the communication device but kept it lodged in your ear.

You had turned your back to focus on hearing Professor Goodwin over the summing sound of the crowd and when you turned around, you recognized two very familiar people chatting to Frisk and Mont.

“Madelyn, Hannah!” you said cheerfully and walked up and extended a hand to both of them. “We can’t even explain how happy we are that you could be here and thank you for translating for Frisk, Hannah.”

“I told them that I could do it,” Mont said and looked a little offended. As Mont was not part of the counsel, the decision to have a human translator to Frisk probably hadn’t reached the armless monster before now.

“I can see that,” Hannah said and she had such a patient tone. “And I’m sure you might even be able to do it better than me, because you know Frisk, right?”

“Yes. Very well,” Mont confirmed but looked a little less defensive.

“But since we’re talking to the humans, we thought it might be a good idea to have a human voice Frisk’s words. Is that okay with you?”

Mont looked a little torn but as Frisk signed, Mont dropped the defensive act. Crisis averted, Madelyn pulled you a little aside while Hannah continued to talk to Mont and Frisk now entirely in sign language.

“How about you?” Madelyn asked. “You’re still good here?”

“Yes,” you confirmed. “But it’s only because I could get out of POCAM. Without your help, Sans would have died in there and I would have been thrown into jail. I can never thank you enough.”

The former POCAM doctor shook her head. “You _are_ thanking me by trying to stop the war. The human government and POCAM especially are so blinded by their resolve that they think the war can only end when all monsters are dead. They refuse to consider other alternatives or other people’s point of view. You are doing the opposite. You’re making sure people know the full story. It’s important. How is your skeleton?”

It must have either been speak of the devil or speak of the sun because Sans appeared out of the blue with Undyne by his side and the sudden reappearance seemed to make some of the humans, who’d come close to the stage, go back a little.

You reached over and pulled him into a hug as soon as he let go of Undyne.

“Everything went okay?”

“no dead,” Sans confirmed.

“And you two are okay?”

“it wasn’t a problem, but we should get started before the people notice that there’s a whole operating station out of commission.”

You nodded and excused yourself from Madelyn who was just watching with a knowing smile.

It took five minutes to get Frisk and Hannah onto the chairs in the middle of the newly built stage. In a moment, they would both step up to the wide podium and the cameras would be rolling. Mettaton was tending to the cameras while Papyrus, Mont, Sans and Undyne stayed by the foot of the stage. You stepped out on stage a little unsure and grabbed a microphone.

It had been agreed that you’d open the ceremony and address the crowd before the filming started. You had tried to prepare something to say but it had gotten lost in all of the logistics.

However, a quick glance back at Frisk and you could almost feel their determination in the air. They have you a thumbs up and smiled brightly.

Still so bright and hopeful, even after everything that they had been through since falling down into the Underground.

It filled you with determination.

You tapped your finger against the microphone and the crowds quieted down and focused their attention on you. You didn’t notice that Mettaton turned on the camera.

“Thank you to all of you for coming here today. You stand here in the crowd today because you want to stop the war between monsters and humans. You stand her today because you believe that we can make a peace agreement and the end goal shouldn’t be elimination of each other. You have all been taught about monsters and you know that they’re nothing like what our government tells us. They’re not vicious creatures, bloodthirsty killers or power-hungry. And most importantly, they want peace, as do all of you here. The monsters only ever wished to live in harmony. And we’ve been lied to about the events that started the war. But you should not listen to me. You should listen to Frisk, the former monster ambassador, who is now considered the most wanted monster sympathizer. They were just a little kid when they met all of these supposedly vicious creatures and yet they now see them as family. Please welcome Frisk and their translator Hannah to the stage.”

The sheer volume of the applause made you flinch out of surprise. As you walked down the podium you placed a hand on Frisk’s shoulder as you passed them and offered them a little smile.

Once of the stage, you turned to make sure that Mettaton would be flipping the switch but the camera already looked like it was on. When Mettaton saw you looking his way, he just waved.

You made your way to Sans, Papyrus, Mont, Undyne and Madelyn.

“He turned on the camera early, didn’t he?” you asked.

“HOW COULD HE NOT? WE KNOW THAT YOU HAVE A LOT OF THINGS TO SAY AND FRISK SAID WE NEEDED SOME OF YOUR SENTIMENT. BUT YOU DIDN’T WANT TO SPEAK…”

“So we had to make you just do the introduction. And like predicted, you had more to say,” Undyne interrupted and looked rather pleased with herself.

“Were you in on this?” you asked Sans, who at least looked a little guilty. “Whatever, I want to hear what Frisk is going to say.”

You could be annoyed that they had filmed you without permission at a later stage. Right now, it was important what Frisk was going to say.

They started to sign and Hannah spoke loud and clear into the microphone, translating their sign language.

“That was my new friend who introduced me,” Hannah spoke. “I met her when I was taken hostage by the organization who calls themselves Protection Of Civilians Against Monsters. But it was POCAM that I needed to be protected from, not the monsters. They took me from my home, from my family and they tortured me for information. I was the one who broke out the monsters from the Underground. I know a lot of people hate me for that. However, I urge you to reconsider. You have been taught to cower in fear of the powerful monsters. But I can promise you that they are nothing to be fearful of. Magic is an incredible thing. Humans can have it too, even if it doesn’t happen. It doesn’t mean that you’re evil. It just means that you can do things others can’t. My chosen family isn’t evil.”

Frisk paused after signing that bit and looked right into the camera. You had a feeling that seeing that piercing stare aimed directly at you would send a chill down your spine. Frisk’s hands started moving again and Hannah spoke anew.

“When the war broke out four years ago, you were lied to. You were told that the monsters attacked heads of state because they wanted to establish themselves as superior and enslave humans. It is blatant lie with no foundation. The bombing that was allegedly aimed to kill the heads of state was not an attack on the humans present. It was an attack on the monsters. We have the proof and it will be everywhere when I finish speaking. Our journalist friends have been given early access to the footage from the scene and written different pieces on it. They had confirmed the authenticity of the tape and anyone else will be able to do that as well. The bomb was placed…”

Frisk’s hands faltered a little and they took a deep breath to compose themselves. With the pause, you let your eyes quickly sweep over the crowd and everyone was watching and listening intensely. You hoped every human who would pass a screen playing this all over the world would get the same expression.

“The bomb was placed under the Monster King Asgore’s seat. He was killed because of it and many of the other monsters present deeply hurt. We fled the scene, frightened, and by the time we got home, humans had declared war on monsters. All your nations had found a common enemy to hate. It’s not fair. Do you even know what that meeting was about? Monsters had applied to be allowed to become citizens. They just wanted to live side by side with us and to have rights to protect them. And humanity answered with a bomb. Look out over the crowd,” Hannah said, translating Frisk’s signs and Mettaton span the main camera around to the audience of human allies.

“These people surrendered when monsters met them in battle. They agreed to come into our home and learn how monsters were really like. They were not kidnapped. They are citizens of some of the so-called destroyed cites that monsters demolished. It’s lies. Be critical. Look closer. Don’t accept anything you hear. Not even what I say. Do the research. Trust the evidence. Monsters aren’t cold-blooded killers and my family has only ever gotten blood on their hands from defending themselves against deadly force. Monsters are peaceful but the war has forced them to behave differently and…”

There was a very loud boom somewhere and everyone in the crowd instinctively ducked down and next they turned to look at the sound of the explosion. Your blood went cold when you saw two tankers with POCAM on the side and several humans in military tactical gear marching by the side of them.

You weren’t sure how they had found you so fast.

The crowd, amazingly, stayed put and drew closer to the stage as the POCAM soldiers approached. On top of one of the tankers, was a familiar man. Professor Jeffords. What was he even doing out here?

“we need to get you all out of here,” Sans said and tried to grab Papyrus’ arm undoubtedly to shortcut him to safety to Papyrus dodged the touch.

“YOU WILL NOT MOVE ME, SANS!”

“pap, now isn’t…”

“Humans!” Professor Jeffords voice rang out with the help of a megaphone. “Vacate the premise immediately or you will be in the line of fire.”

Some people started running away but the majority retreated closer to the stage and the monsters.

You clicked on your earpiece and Alphys’ voice came through as soon as you did.

“You n-need to get out of t-there! Now. T-They must have r-recognized the town o-or someone triggered an a-alarm on the local POCAM base and called in r-reinforcements. It’s not s-safe. Get out!”

You could hear the terror in Alphys’ voice and you recalled your conversation in the laboratory before you left. They were stuck there, too far away to help and you didn’t envy it one bit.

But you couldn’t go home. They were coming at you and running away was not an option. It was what the monsters did last time and it led to nothing but war. Besides, Sans couldn’t get all of you out of there fast enough and the innocent human allies might get hurt if you started disappearing.

You cast a glance backwards towards Frisk who nodded, determined.

“What is the plan?” asked Madelyn who came running up to you.

“I said: DISPERSE IMMEDIATELY or face the consequences,” Professor Jeffords warned and as he did, one of the tankers sent out a warning shot above people’s head but that was enough to the them moving. They scrambled away while all the monsters stayed put in their positions.

Alphys and Goodwin were yelling in your ear but you reached up to turn it off.

“doe, what are you doing?” Sans asked, looking so on edge and ready to bolt like all the fleeing humans around you.

“Are we taking them on?” Undyne asked, raising her hands like she was prepared to materialize a spear.

“No,” you said sternly and Undyne let her hands fall to her side but you had no doubt that the POCAM guards had seen her fighting stance.

Frisk and Hannah had made it down the stage and the translator handed off the microphone to you and you took it cautiously.

Frisk signed.

“They’re saying that you talk to them. You believe in them. Make them believe in you,” Mont said, translating flawlessly and swiftly.

Your grip on the microphone tightened until the skin over your knuckles went white.

“doe, they’ll shoot you too,” Sans warned.

“YOU CAN PROTECT HER, BROTHER,” Papyrus said, ever the optimist and maybe a little naïve.

You were losing your human shield as the last of the humans in the audience ran away, even if several of them looked back and hesitated. You didn’t blame them for running away. Any sane person would.

“We want peace,” you said as you raised the microphone to your mouth. “We are not here to fight.”

You caught how some of the soldiers on the ground looked to each other even as they kept marching.

“This is a peaceful protest to let people know that the monsters want peace. They never wanted this war.”

Professor Jeffords was at the top of one of the tankers but now another man popped up of the other, with a megaphone to match.

“This is Director Jameson of Protection Of Civilians Against Monsters. Do you surrender?”

You shared confused glances with the monsters and humans by your side.

“We do not surrender. We want a peace treaty.”

“That’s not how it works, little lady.”

You bristled at the nickname and clenched your jaw.

“Surrender or we fire,” the director repeated as the tankers came to a halt, as did the soldiers around them.

“they’re in for a bad time if they try just the slightest thing,” Sans warned and you had expected to feel the air crackle with magic like it usually did but you didn’t feel anything.

Looking back at Sans, you saw how tense and frozen up he looked. Had they managed to make another magic nullifying disk or an equivalent? That would explain why they were willing to walk right in here with the monsters that allegedly could take out entire cities. Sans could indeed do that with his magic, you knew that but you also knew he wouldn’t do that.

“Undyne,” you asked in a hushed voice. “Can you conjure up a spear?”

Undyne frowned and looked down at her hands but nothing happened.

“I’m going to freaking kill-” she started yelling when she realized that she didn’t have any magic, just like you suspected. Papyrus slapped a hand over her mouth.

Frisk looked worried. In fact all of them looked worried but you reached into your pocket and felt the disk you had modified to counter whatever device might be admitting something that dampened the magic powers.

You couldn’t guarantee that it would work if what they were using were of different design but still, you had to try.

“ALPHYS IS SAYING THAT WE SHOULD GET OUT OF HERE,” Papyrus said, who apparently still had the line open back to the laboratory.

“What is it going to be? Peaceful surrender or eating lead?” Director Jameson asked again and you caught the impatient edge in his voice. But it was more than that; he did sound a little frightened as well.

“Will you trust me?” you asked the group around you and they all nodded without hesitation, even Hannah and Madelyn who had stayed by your side in the chaos.

You looked to the stage to show that Mettaton had turned the camera and it was filming everything. You could always count on him to keep the camera rolling. That worked in your advantage.

Frisk had told humanity the monsters’ intentions but this was an opportunity to show them that they truly wanted peace and not to hurt humans.

“What is stopping the very powerful monsters at my side from killing you all? According to you that’s all what monsters do.”

Professor Jeffords chuckled and he looked evil. “Oh, do try.”

So he was definitely the one who had something to do with the new magic mollifying device, whatever or wherever it was. You were placing a lot of faith in the modified disk in your pocket but surrender or bullets were not real options.

Even if you surrendered, which you knew your friends would never allow, it would be like a death warrant.

“Have you got another device to eliminate the use of magic, Professor Jeffords?” you asked and took one step forward. “Is that why you are brave enough to face off against the monsters?”

“You have a minute,” Director Jameson threatened cutting off whatever Professor Jeffords had been about to say. “One minute before I give the order to blow you all to pieces. Their monster magic cannot save you. Surrender or die.”

You cast a glance back to Sans. It would have to be mostly his magic. It was best suited for this and it was a tall order to ask of him; having his abilities captured on camera with the whole world watching. But you could see that these POCAM soldiers wouldn’t listen to reason.

They had been fed propaganda and fuelled their hatred for too long but you had to trust that the common citizen watching wouldn’t be that far gone.

“Sans,” you said and locked eyes with him. “When I tell you, you take all of their guns away from them and keep them in place. Undyne and Pap, you throw bones and spears at those tankers and make them unable to shoot or drive.”

“I think you’re forgetting about the no magic thing,” Undyne hissed.

“No, I’m not,” you assured her and then begged to some higher power that all of this would work out.

It had to be okay, you repeated to yourself.

“Your minute is up,” Director Jameson said.

With your back still turned towards the looming army, you reached into your pocket and flipped the switch. Instantly, you felt the crackle of Sans’ magic in the air and the three monsters used their magic like you had told them to.

It happened in a matter of seconds.

Guns were yanked out of the soldiers’ arms and they went flying everywhere, far away from the soldiers. Bones and spears were launched across the square denting the cannons and the wheels on the tankers. All the people in front of you were enveloped in a blue glow and Sans held out his arm while his left eye flared magnificently blue and sweat started to bead on his skull.

Silence settled with the shock as the army had been rendered completely vulnerable. Then the director was shouting at Professor Jeffords.

“You said that they couldn’t use magic!” he screamed as he tried to wiggle out of Sans’ hold and failing.

“I made a new device! It couldn’t be possible!”

You lifted the microphone to your lips once again. “We reverse engineered your design of the last one. Monsters and humans working together can accomplish wonderful things as you will hopefully see.”

“This is no honorable death!” the director of POCAM screamed. “Frozen like targets at the shooting range. You’re monsters! You humans that stand with the monsters too.”

He was so angry. You didn’t know what had made him so angry but you had a feeling some of it was to mask the terror he must be feeling. It wasn’t fun being trapped by Sans. You would know.

“We are not killing you,” you said with a steady voice and looked over to Frisk who nodded with a big smile on their face and did the sign for: Keep going. “Like I said, like Frisk said on the live stream that people are still watching, monsters want peace. They don’t want war and they could tell you all of this themselves if you had just been willing to listen. However, you didn’t care to hear it from them, so as their allies we step up to the plate to defend them when they cannot defend themselves.”

You turned away from the immobilized army, quickly checking that Sans was still holding up, before turning to the stage and the camera that Mettaton was operating. The robot monster directed to down to your little group.

“To any and all watching this, when you think about monsters, think of this. Think of the monsters standing up against the forces that want them to surrender or die. Watch how the monsters could kill every human here but how they did not. They are serious about peace. The meeting that started the war was an attack on them, an attempt to kill the monster counsel and their leaders. It wasn’t the other way around. And to any heads of state, the monster counsel wants nothing more than to broker a peace deal. Reach out to them and listen when they speak. We might have classified them as monsters but they are not monsters like the media and military painted them out to be.”

You looked away from the camera to see all the people who had been in the crowd earlier returning to the town’s square.

“doe,” Sans whispered behind you. “i can’t hold everyone for that much longer.”

Frisk grabbed the microphone from you and handed it to Hannah who took it and watched as Frisk signed.

“POCAM soldiers and human allies, please allow us safe passage home. The monsters just want to be a part of our world. They don’t want to fight. They won’t fight you, unless you make them. Allies, take the guns, empty them. Soldiers, remain where you are. You have seen what magic can do but you needn’t fear it. It is in responsible hands.”

At Frisk’s prompt, the allies from the crowd started picking up the guns, even if many of them did so hesitantly.

Mettaton hopped down from the stage, camera turned towards the square where you could now see all the bullets spilling out onto the floor. It was a powerful image to see hundreds of civilian people empty out military guns while the POCAM soldiers watched helplessly in the background.

“Sans, you’re not looking too hot, my friend,” Mettaton commented.

Sans just growled and you saw how his extended arm was shaking.

Undyne was already busy signaling to the rest of the monsters around, still standing in their positions, that they should retreat.

“I WILL TAKE THE VAN,” Papyrus said and fetched the van parked behind the stage and drove up. Madelyn and Hannah declined the invitation to join. Frisk and Mont curled together in one seat. Undyne took the passenger seat next to Papyrus. You and Mettaton helped Sans into the van.

“ARE WE READY?”

“just drive,” Sans grumbled, hand still raised. He didn’t look like he was willing to lower it any time soon.

So Papyrus drove out and all the human allies you passed on the way waved at you while the POCAM people remained frozen and Sans only let his hand drop when the car made it outside of the town’s border.

He looked absolutely exhausted but at the same time he looked content.

Undyne and Papyrus were talking to Alphys and Professor Goodwin on the phone up front but you couldn’t pay attention to any of that. You focused on Sans how had just let himself flop into your arms the moment that he let his hand fall down.

“they’re going to come after us,” he said, pessimistically.

“Their tanks are destroyed, their weapons emptied and they just had their entire belief system challenged. They saw monsters being merciful. They saw humans and monster communicating as equals. It matters, Sans. And the whole world watched it happen.”

“so we think we can truly get a no blood spilled route?” Sans said and there was a teasing in his voice. He sounded slightly delirious but happy.

“You bet your bony ass that we can,” you said and looked over to Frisk, who maneuvered their hands free from Mont to sign.

It seemed to just be two signs but you couldn’t recognize them, even as Frisk repeated them for you once more, slower this time.

“I don’t know that that means, Frisk,” you said and felt a little guilty that you hadn’t found time to work on your sign language amidst the craziness. Mont couldn’t see Frisk’s hand properly while practically curled into the teenager’s side, but Sans finally opened his eye sockets and looked over to Frisk who patiently repeated the signs.

“true pacifist,” Sans translated. “they’re saying you’re a true pacifist. you’re someone who dodges attacks, never attacks yourself and talk to people until they stop fighting you.”

Your heart, or perhaps your soul, felt warm at that classification.

“Thank you, Frisk. That sounds like a good thing.”

Sans hummed and let his eye sockets close again and he snuggled closer to you.

“oh, it is. it’s a very good thing.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a beast of a chapter (+8.5k) and I wrote most of it yesterday in one long writing session that made my shoulder ache but I hope that you liked it! So many things happened in this penultimate chapter. I don't even know how to bring up things in this one but let me know your thoughts? Or maybe your favourite part? It's been planned for so long and I hope I managed to this final "action" scene justice. There was so many things going on. Thank you so much for all the lovely people who have stuck with this story for so long. We're truly in the homestretch now. 
> 
> The keen observer might notice that I marked that this story will finish after 37 parts. There will be one more chapter, probably not a very long one, and then TWO alternative endings if the reset has gone through. I trust you can guess how those two will differ from this one? The chapter that's scheduled to go up next week isn't written yet but I should have time to write it during the week. I can't promise the two alternative endings will be ready to go up on the following Sundays but like usual, I'll do my best and they're obviously just bonus content. 
> 
> I think I might make a separate story for all the Sans' point of view bonus stuff that I mentioned before. It's obviously a lot of dialogue being repeated and I think it would work better in a separately posted story. But let me know you thoughts on that. And like mentioned before, if you want a specific scene/part of chapter from Sans' POV, do let me know and it might make it into that bonus stuff.


	35. A True Pacifist

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The dust had settled. The monsters had spoken their peace. She had found a family and a home amongst the monsters. The war was coming to an end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GUYS! It's done! There's be bonus stuff but the main story is done! Please let me know your thoughts in the comments?

The events that passed on that grey Sunday would forever be remembered. The whole world had watched with baited breath as human allies to the monsters spoke on their behalf and then the agency that humans had been told would protect them against monsters had showed up. Only, POCAM had been much more brutal than anyone had expected from someone tasked with protection of human lives. The “Surrender or Die” line had travelled far and wide and it horrified so many people.

Alphys had released the video footage from the bombing as soon as the POCAM crashed the event and the work of the original dozen of journalists had been published everywhere and hundreds of other media had picked up the story and run with it.

It wasn’t everyday that the enemy that you had been at war with for four years showed mercy when they clearly had the upper hand. It was especially unusual when humans had always been told of the monsters’ brutality. There were a lot of theories formed why the monsters hadn’t killed the humans in their grasp. Every second of the footage were being analyzed to figure out what had passed.

All the monsters present at the event had been allowed to retreat and even as the magic hold of the soldiers vanished, they did not take chase, despite a couple of very angry superiors.

The humans who had identified themselves as monster allies had been ordered to be seized for being monster sympathizers but none of the soldiers had wanted to comply with that order after what they had just witnessed.

In essence, the whole world had been shocked. The people in power, who had purposely painted the monsters as villains, worried for their careers. The majority of people felt confused how the monsters they had been told horror stories about didn’t seem like that at all. Everyone wanted answers.

But more importantly, everyone wanted peace. Even the people who weren’t keen on monsters wanted the war to end after they had seen the type of enemy they were up against.

If only they knew that the notorious and powerful Sans only had one HP.

It only took a couple of days before the call came through.

In that time, the monsters had retired to New New Home to rest after that whole ordeal. The monsters spent time with their loved ones. Human allies who came up to the main gate, which wasn’t guarded by POCAM at the moment, were allowed entry.

You had been so tired that you had spent a whole first day in bed just sleeping. Obviously, Sans had been right there beside you. Papyrus had muttered something about laziness but at the same time, he brought you food whenever he could hear that you woke up.

“SLEEP MIGHT BE IMPORTANT BUT IT’S IMPORTANT TO EAT TOO,” he had said.

You had managed to pry yourself away from the bed the following day and you were in the laboratory working out possible things to study about human souls with Professor Goodwin when the call came.

It was a negotiator, who acted on behalf of all nations, who wanted to arrange a meeting to make a peace agreement. They wanted to end the war.

Frisk obviously couldn’t speak over the phone, and Alphys was much too nervous, so in the end, you were the one who had to talk to the negotiator. It felt eerie to stand with a phone and discuss the end to a worldwide war.

You wondered how Frisk handled responsibility like that. You confirmed that the monsters were indeed looking to end the war peacefully and that world leaders would have to sit down the whole monster counsel at a neutral location, so old mistakes were not repeated. The negotiator said that sounded reasonable and promised to call back the following morning when everyone had been caught up on the situation.

When you hung up the phone, your heart was hammering a mile a minute.

Frisk signed that you did great and then you couldn’t help but laugh. You told them the details and how they definitely needed someone other than you to act as a mediator. Alphys and Frisk had already run off to tell the others the news.

“You’re doing better than you think,” Professor Goodwin assured you. He had already started talking with Alphys about the possible research projects that he wanted to start up. He wanted you to work with him on them.

You weren’t quite sure yet. It might be difficult to draw the line what to include and what the leave out and you weren’t sure you could ever be unbiased and scientific when it came to monsters anymore.

When you had started to study their history, it had been all exciting but at the same time, you hadn’t ever imagined that you could get this close to the allegedly vicious creatures.

“Maybe,” you replied to Goodwin. “Don’t work too long on this. Toriel will undoubtedly want to hold a celebratory dinner and you’re part of the team now.”

Professor Goodwin looked a little doubtful.

“Still scared of monsters, doc?” you asked, half-teasing and half-serious.  

“No. Some of them would be classified as scary because of their power but I have seen that we still have to learn a lot about these creatures that we will share our world with. Their moral code is different from ours. They are like us in many ways but they still have significant differences. They are pacifists.”

“Indeed,” you agreed. “I’ll see you later at Toriel’s. Probably at 8 PM, just a heads up.”

Professor Goodwin nodded before getting back to his notes.

It was odd to be back in New New Home without actively working towards a mission. Every since you had been allowed to leave this space, you had been stayed to work on one project or the other. First it had been Papyrus’ hand, then helping find Frisk, then enabling the reset and finally getting the message of peace out there.

These past months had been the most busy and weirdest time in your life but you wouldn’t have it any other way. You might have been taken away from your daily life against your will in the beginning but you were choosing to stay now. New New Home and the individuals who lived here had become a home to you.

You found Frisk by the entrance of the laboratory and offered to walk them home. It was only a short walk to Toriel’s house but Frisk happily signed: Yes.

Now that things had finally quieted down somewhat, you really needed to get better at your sign language to better communicate with Frisk. Perhaps, Sans could help you out.

“It’s a beautiful evening,” you said and looked up and around you as you walked in step with Frisk. “On the outside, this place seems like a fortress because of the wall. However, once you’re in here, it’s like a little town where everyone knows everyone. The town in itself is nothing spectacular but its inhabitants make it a very special place.”

Frisk tugged your sleeve and signed.

Something about other places? And the sign for comparison?

“Do I think other places can be like this too?” you asked, a little unsure if that was what Frisk wanted to ask you.

However, the teenager nodded happily and you felt a surge of pride that you’d been able to understand.

Frisk did one more sign that you recognized: Harmony.

You hummed as you considered your answer as the two of you kept walking.

“Yes, I do think monsters and humans can live in harmony,” you answered after a little pondering. “Not right away and not without the occasional hiccup, but I think it’s a distinct possibility. Just look at the two of us. Look how close we are with the monsters. I don’t know if you were scared when you fell down into the Underground and stumbled upon them, but I could imagine that you would be. I was terrified when Undyne and Sans found me, yet I now consider so many of them close friends and well, Sans…”

You didn’t know how to explain it but you looked over to see Frisk signing but this time you couldn’t pick out the words. Frisk seemed to realize. Instead, they touched their own chest and then reached up to touch your chest lightly. Their smile was so warm and comforting and you knew they had probably been saying something about your souls.

“I swear I’ll learn sign language better, Frisk,” you said while your heart swelled with emotions at the gesture.

Frisk just shrugged and smiled happily. You reached Toriel’s house and like usual, you weren’t allowed to leave until you had accepted a piece of pie. Toriel was so happy when you told her about the negotiator had called and a peace treaty would probably be on the horizon.

Predictably, she said: “We will have to celebrate with dinner. I will send out invitations and we will meet here to eat at 8 PM. Oh, I better start cooking.”

You and Frisk shared a subtle smile.

“Sounds good. I’ll go home and tell Sans and Papyrus,” you promised. “And I’ll see you two later tonight.”

On your walk back through town, you spotted Mettaton and Napstablook lying side by side, looking up at the clouds. You considered walking up and saying hi but they seemed to be in their own little world. You recalled that Napstablook said that they had drifted apart after Mettaton got his robot body but right now the cousins looked close.

Family was an important thing.

As you had been looking off to the side, you hadn’t been paying much attention to where you were walking and you almost bumped into someone. As you corrected yourself, you found Mont jumping around excitedly.

“We’re getting that peace thing, right?” Mont asked, excitement and hope on the monster’s face.

“Yeah, it looks like that. The war will finally come to an end.”

“About bloody time! I’ve got to go see Frisk!” Mont replied and then sprinted off. You worried that they might stumble and fall on their face but they moved quite steadily, but you supposed they had practiced sprinting around like that since they were a kid.

When you opened the door to the skeleton brothers’ home, you found Alphys and Undyne as well as the brothers.

“I hear you talked to a negotiator,” Undyne said and got up and clapped a hand on your shoulder. “Way to go. That means they will finally stop being at war with us, right?”

“Most likely, yeah. The person I talked to sounded very interested in brokering a peace deal with the monsters,” you confirmed.

“HOW COULD THEY NOT AFTER ALL THE WONDERFUL THINGS YOU SAID ON THE TV? THEY WERE REMINDED OF HOW GREAT WE ARE!”

“They p-probably found it rather p-peculiar that a group of powerful m-monsters didn’t hurt all those human s-soldiers. I k-know I said that you s-should have come b-back, and I still stand behind that s-statement but your p-plan was a c-clever one,” Alphys said while looking straight at you and holding eye contact as she spoke, which you knew were a hard thing for her.

“I got lucky,” you replied.

“nah, you got smart,” Sans corrected.

“Oh, before I forget, Toriel’s house, 8 PM, celebratory dinner with all of us.”

“A-Again? I need a n-new dress!” Alphys said. “I can’t w-wear the same o-one as l-last time we went for d-dinner!”

Undyne snorted. “Of course you can, honey. But if you want, we can look around the shops and find you something.”

It was odd to see how tough Undyne could be around most people but she always took a slightly softer and gentler tone with her skittish girlfriend.

The two of them rushed out the door and you were left alone with your two favorite skeletons.

“DO YOU KNOW WHAT TORIEL IS MAKING?” Papyrus asked.

“Not sure,” you answered but you also caught the unspoken question. “But I do think that she would love some help in the kitchen, if you want to help, Pap. You’ve improved so much with all the dishes I taught you – I mean, obviously you were good already but…”

“I KNOW THAT! I AM THE GREAT AND MAGNIFICENT PAPYRUS! BUT YOU HAVE TAUGHT ME A LOT OF NICE THINGS AND BEING ABLE TO USE BOTH HANDS HELPS QUITE A BIT. THAT WAS WHAT MADE ME THE MOST SAD ABOUT LOSING MY HAND, I THOUGHT I MIGHT NOT BE ABLE TO DO ALL THE THINGS YOU SHOULD DO IN A KITCHEN,” Papyrus admitted and then reached down to pull off his glove to show his new hand.

He didn’t take off the gloves very often and you curiously stepped up to see the hand. It was blue like Sans’ eye when he used magic but it was more muted. As Papyrus moved his fingers, the joints did their job smoothly.

“It was my pleasure to help, though Sans did most of the work,” you said and looked over to Sans who was sat at the dining table and leaning forward to slump across the table.

“only a little magic, no big deal.”

“SANS HAS ALWAYS HAD IT SO EASY WITH MAGIC, SO I DO IMAGINE THAT IT WASN’T TOO HARD BUT I AM STILL HAPPY THAT HE HELPED. BUT I SHOULD HEAD OUT TO SEE TORIEL! SHE ISN’T VERY GOOD ON HER FEET AND I CAN HELP HER COOK A WONDERFUL MEAL FOR ALL OF US TO ENJOY. DO YOU THINK WE COULD MAKE SPAGHETTI?”

“Why don’t you try to ask her?” you said.

“BRILLIANT IDEA!” Papyrus said and pulled you into a tight hug before he was gone as well.

Sans had been very quiet since you had walked into the room but he actually had a tendency to do that when there were a lot of people around.

“Something on your mind?” you asked and sat down next to him.

He slowly removed his front from the dining table and then proceeded to tip back on his chair instead.

“i’m still trying to figure out if this is all a dream,” he confessed. “it seems a little too good to be true and i’m worried that i’ll wake up in a different timeline and that this – you – is just something i’ve imagined.”

“I’m real,” you said and reached over to intertwine your fingers. Holding a skeleton hand had been a little odd at first but by this point it felt safe and familiar. It felt like Sans. “And we still have a long way to go. The negotiator sounded hopeful but we still have to discuss terms of the peace treaty, you know. And not everything is perfect. Our friends are still hurt. Asgore is still gone. A lot of the humans might reevaluate how they see monsters but there will still be some that will insist on hating you because you’re different.”

“i know,” Sans said and rubbed his thumb over the back of your hand. “it will be an ever-going fight. but if my knowledge of alternative timelines has taught me anything, there isn’t a perfect one. maybe one might seem perfect at one stationary moment but nothing stays perfect. life moves on. but still… to have so many be okay and to have found you, a human who makes my soul feel at ease, seems a bit too good to be true.”

“Waiting for the other shoe to drop?” you asked, understanding what he was getting at.

Sans just shrugged.

“Like you said, life moves on. The good and the bad but we can handle it. I think we’ve proved that.”

“what if i lose you?”

You wanted to say that he wouldn’t but none of you could really know that for sure, could you? However, you knew that you were here right now and that was what mattered.

“Who knows that will happen? But we do know that I’m right here, right now. And I love you.”

Sans’ grin widened at that. “sometimes, i could swear that it was fate, or karma, or whatever divine intervention that brought you into my life. whatever made you stay late at the office that day when frisk was brought through. but then i think it might just have all been a string of consequences and that things could have gone differently for us.”

“You’re probably right. If we hadn’t found a common goal, if you hadn’t decided to bring me here and let me meet Papyrus, we couldn’t know how I’d feel about you in the present moment. But, Sans?”

“yeah?”

“Don’t dwell on all of that. I know it’s difficult but try not to think of alternate timelines or resets. Try not to worry about what might happen or what might not happen. Try to just be. Work with what we’ve got. Try your best to make informed decisions. Go with your gut. Live in the moment and whatever other philosophical or motivational crap that might convince you to focus on the now.”

“you’re secretly a dork, aren’t you?” Sans asked and he was watching you closely and his white pinpricks were shimmering.

“Yes, I am but so are you!” you argued and poked him on in the ribs which made him squeal. He almost tipped too far back on his chair and lost balance, so he stopped rocking on it.

“don’t you dare,” Sans threatened when he saw the gleam in your eyes. You knew that his bones were sensitive to touch and he was rather ticklish.

You were well-aware that he could just short-cut away from you, so you launched a tickle attack quickly and made sure to get a good hold of him, when he predictably tried to short-cut away to his room.

You followed with him and his arms even wrapped around you when you went through the void. He probably did it instinctively to protect you since you hadn’t had the best hold of him.

Moving you had been the wrong move on this part though, because now you were perched over him and he was pinned beneath you as you tickled whatever you could get your hands on. He was laughing, loudly, even if a bit strained.

“i could-“ he tried to get out between huffs of laughter, “throw you- across the room!”

“That would be cheating!” you declared as you tickled him more and he just wiggled around and clearly tried not to instinctively use his powers.

It was so adorable how he let you “torture” him without ever fighting back. You quickly took pity on him.

“Do you surrender?” you asked, hands closed around his lower ribs but not moving anymore.

He looked up at you, pinpricks shimmering more than usually. He looked so happy and carefree and you wanted to see more of this Sans. He deserved to be happy, as did you.

You could make each other happy, even if you still had a monumental task ahead of you. The ball was finally rolling and it would be easier from hereon out. Hopefully. But either way, you’d have each other.

“you’re using my soft spot for you to your advantage,” Sans declared and if he had lips, you had a feeling that he would be pouting.

“Always. It’s my secret weapon,” you said and released him. “But we probably should get ready for the dinner later.”

“we can’t just stay here?” Sans said and sat up and pulled you to his chest.

“We’re celebrating that negotiations are starting for a peace treaty to end the war, Sans,” you argued. “We have to go.”

Sans just mumbled a response into the crook of your neck.

“What was that? Do I need to get you to surrender again?” you said softly and reached up to trace the edge of his skull with our fingers.

“nah, i’ll go anywhere with you.”

You weren’t sure how to reply to that but you felt the warmth expand in your chest. Undoubtedly, your soul was reacting to his words.

“Good, my soft skeleton boy, who wants nothing more than to protect all the people he loves,” you replied, your voice heavy with emotion. “Because I’d go anywhere with you as well.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little shorter than usual today but I only really wanted to have final conversations with a lot of the wonderful characters from the universe. Did you pick up on the similarities of between the final scene with Sans and when the two of them first meet in Chapter 2? I couldn't help myself, so I had to make it all come a bit full circle. I can't believe this story is over. I also cannot believe that I wrote over 150,000 words for an Undertale reader-insert fic. I've never written for the Undertale fandom before and never with a second person point of view! This was just supposed to be a bit of fun and the story just kept growing and growing but I'm so happy that it did. And I hope you lovely readers enjoyed it! Thank you so much for giving my story a chance and thank you to everyone who has left kudos and especially thanks to the lovely lot of people who took the time to comment on every chapter update - you have no idea how much it boosted my motivation to stick with this story. 
> 
> Obviously, there's still the two alternate endings to go and then I'm making a new "story" where I'm showing some of Sans' point of view. So I'm not letting go quite yet but this is the official last chapter and I hope you liked it. And I hope you stick around for the two other endings (if things had reset). I'll try to get the first one up on Sunday!


	36. Alternate Ending: Neutral

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things had been reset. The bomb hadn't gone off. Monsters had been granted restrictive citizenship and been allowed to live in a small number of cities. It takes Sans a year to find her again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: The original story has a happy ending but these alternate endings are both sad.

You came home from your shift at the restaurant and turned on the television out of habit. Last night, it had been a movie but right now, news were rolling across the screen and your ears perked up at the mention of monsters.

They had come up from the so-called Underground two years ago and since then the world had been changed. You had been fascinated with them up in the beginning. After you finished high school, you had even considered if you should keep studying and take a minor in monster history. As it turned out, you decided to take a gap year to work and step away from your studies instead. You had been too caught up in your own head since you lost your family and there was nothing rushing you.

 _“Today, a legalization was passed banning interspecies relationships between monsters and humans. There have been scattered protests throughout the monster friendly cities but it is unlikely that it will have any effect on the people in charge. Still 95% of American cities has banned monsters from entering. The legalization came as a result of a monster and human… wanting to marry each other. They have been denied the request and now their quote on quote relationship has been deemed illegal as well._ ”

You clicked your tongue and got settled on the sofa. Working at a restaurant wasn’t exactly a dream job but it had been good for you, even if it made your feet ache. You had finally started talking to people again, instead of just ignoring your classmates and studying. And one of your colleagues had even asked you out and you’d be going on the third date tomorrow. It felt a bit scary but also nice. You had never thought that your crush would ask you out but it seemed like the universe felt like it owed you a favor.

You flicked off the news and surfed through the channels. You hadn’t really gotten involved with the monsters and to be honest, they had lost a bit of their novelty to you. It was unlikely that you’d run into any of them because your city wasn’t amongst the very few that were monster friendly and allowed them residence.

If a monster stepped within the city limit, then the police had every right to retain them and throw them into monster jail. You weren’t even sure if they got a proper hearing. There had been a big meeting about citizenship a year ago but the deal had ended up severely disadvantaging the monsters and what they were allowed to do, even if they technically got cohabiting rights.

You pulled out your phone and scrolled through social media. It had been a busy day at the restaurant and it was nice just to sit in the darkness of your home, the TV screen flicking with an old comedy series now. It was a bit more lighthearted than hearing that the government was still trying to segregate monsters and humans even more. Hearing that just made you sad, so you tried to avoid it.

An odd feeling swept over you and you felt like the air crackled with electricity. You were alarmed for a beat that maybe your lights where short-circuiting, even if none of them were on. However, it seemed to be much worse when a hooded figure appeared in the middle of your living room.

You screamed on instinct and tried to climb over the back of your sofa. How did that man just appear!

“easy, doe. i wouldn’t hurt you.”

The voice sounded calm and oddly familiar and you wondered if this was some elaborate trick and you tired brain had just missed someone sneaking into your apartment. But then the man pulled back his hoodie and he wasn’t a man, he was a skeleton.

“Get out of my house!” you screamed. You tried to scramble away but you lost balance on the back of the couch and you were falling.

But suddenly you were stationary without having collided with the floor. You opened your eyes, which you had squeezed shut, to find that you were just hanging in mid-air.

“could you just-“

“What are you doing? Put me down!” you demanded.

At your words, you were lowered to the floor, gently but you still fumbled to get on your feet again as soon as you could. The skeleton was still standing in the middle of your living room, where he had magically appeared out of thin air. He didn’t look very threatening but he was undoubtedly a monster and skeletons were rare monsters and they…

It dawned on you then.

You had seen this skeleton before. It had been a while.

But he had been in the news when the monsters first emerged. He was on that monster counsel and he was allegedly very powerful but that still didn’t answer what the hell he was doing in the middle of your living room at night!

There were debating sides as to whether monsters were violent or not but either way you didn’t appreciate one breaking into your home and in a city where they were not allowed to be at all. You should be reaching for your phone and dialing the police but the skeleton just stood in front of you without moving. You might have thought him frozen if you couldn’t see how his eye sockets were observing you. Were his pupils just white pinpricks? How did that work?

Too much time had passed with the two of you just staring at each other. Your heart rate was slowly calming down. The skeleton seemed reluctant to speak first, so you supposed that you had to. Part of you wanted to demand that he poof right out of your home but another part of you was curious. And a tiny, almost unnoticeable, part of you told you that this encounter was important – you felt a pull within your chest.

“What are you doing here?” you asked, your voice much more normal than before. “I don’t want you in my home. How did you even get in here?”

“just… hear me out, will you? it’s not easy to explain,” the skeleton said and his voice was deep and somehow it seemed comforting. You could feel the tension easing out of your shoulders.

“Who are you?”

“sans,” he replied and now he sounded sad, like you should have been able to know that.

“Okay, Sans. Forgive me but you broke into my home and you’re not even allowed to be here. This city has a restriction against monsters. If you’re found here, the police will lock you up. Though, I suppose it isn’t of the biggest concern for someone who can… teleport?”

“shortcut. i make shortcuts between places.”

“Whatever, I don’t care that you can teleport or shortcut or if you can freaking fly. You have two minutes to explain what the hell you’re doing here or I will call the authorities on you.”

You weren’t sure if you should be threatening this alleged powerful monster with the police but you didn’t know what else to do. He didn’t seem that scary, despite being able to teleport and whatever telekinesis he had used to catch your fall. He seemed… nice, actually. That was the feeling you got off him, which didn’t make much sense because you’d never seen him before.

“i’m not sure two minutes will cut it,” Sans said and scuffed his foot on the carpet. He was wearing pink slippers. What kind of self-respecting monster wore pink slippers?

“Just start talking,” you said. “Wait, are you dangerous?”

He was probably not the right person to ask about that but it wasn’t like you had time to grab your laptop and pull up the monster register and check his status. A year ago, as part of the negotiations for rights it had been decided that every monster had to registered; so all humans could look them up.

“i am, but not to you. like i said, i would never hurt you. in this timeline or any other.”

Timelines? He wasn’t giving you any answers. He was just making you more confused with each moment that passed.

“Sans, start saying something that makes sense!”

“do… do you remember me? at all?”

“Huh? What do you mean? You? I guess, from the news? Vaguely but I don’t get very involved with monster politics,” you replied and judging by the sad expression on Sans’ skull that wasn’t the answer that he had been hoping for.

You weren’t even sure how his skull could be that expressive. It was a sight to behold. He looked almost human in his expressions.

“i know none of this makes sense to you. it’s not your fault. if anything it’s mine. but… you still have an interest in science, right?”

How did he know that?

“Yeah, I do, but I’m taking a break from my studies at the moment. What’s your point?”

“obviously, magic is a thing. it’s something that we monsters have but some humans have it as well. it can affect the universe in different ways. one of those things is time manipulation. someone with magic might be able to rewind the time and alter the path of the world, thus creating an alternate timeline.”

It sounded a bit off but at the same time, you knew that magic was a very powerful thing that the scientist hadn’t quite figured out yet. Hypothetically, you supposed someone would be able to rewind time, even if it sounded very far-fetched. So had monsters two years ago before they suddenly appeared.

“I’m following,” you said. “But what does that have to do with you being in the middle of my living room, Sans?”

Sans looked down at his slippers and the hood fell forward to cover his skull as he spoke in a lower pitched voice than before.

“we knew each other. in an alternate timeline, a war breaks out a year ago when a bomb is planted at a meeting about monsters gaining citizenship. we meet three years from now when i’m looking for my friend frisk. you become a trusted ally to us monsters. you help my brother papyrus get his hand back, which he lost at the bombing. you help save frisk from an evil agency who kidnapped them. you and i… grew close. i pulled out your soul so that you could see it and later, the night before the reset, i showed you mine.”

It was a lot of information to take in. You moved forward to sit back down on the couch that you had almost knocked over when Sans frightened you. Could he really be telling the truth?

Had you met in another life only for things to be rewinded?

It sounded absolutely insane but part of you wanted to believe him. You hadn’t missed how his voice had turned softer when talking about your souls, nor had you been able to ignore the warm feeling in your chest. He did seem familiar but how was it possible?

“Sans, I… I don’t know what to tell you. Are you sure it’s me?”

“i’d know you anywhere. i’m sure. you don’t believe me?”

He sounded so sad and you wanted to walk up to him and wrap him in a hug to reassure him. It wasn’t a sentiment you ever thought you’d feel for a monster, let alone one who broke into your home, but you couldn’t very much control your whims.

“Maybe? I guess… it’s just a lot, okay? And I don’t get why you came here, even if all that’s true.”

“i promised pap to come looking for you, in the other timeline. he said i should track you down and bring you home. he doesn’t remember you now, of course, but you became fast friends. it took almost a year to find you but i thought maybe…”

“What? That I’d remember? Wait, you’re saying that this pap can’t remember either. Why can you? How do you seem to know so many things?”

Sans let out a dry chuckle. “i have spent a long time in a dark and timeless place. it had side effects. it lets me remember different timelines. it’s more a curse than a blessing.”

You frowned. It was odd to feel such attachment towards the skeleton monster in front of you when you’d never met him before. At least, you hadn’t meet him in this life. Or not yet? If things had been different, then…

Your head was hurting but you were also insanely curious. Sans had an image of you in his head and you wondered how you would have looked like three years down the road. Would you still be shutting yourself off? Had you started to allow people to come back into your life? Had Sans maybe even been that person?

“What was I like?” you asked.

Sans finally lifted his face and you saw slight blue residue at the bottom of his eye sockets. Had be been crying? How did you know that his tears were blue?

“you’re the best person,” Sans said with utter conviction. “we didn’t meet under great circumstances before but you still kept an open mind. even with the war and everyone saying that monsters were dangerous… you gave us a chance. you made your own observations and you’re so compassionate. your kindness had no bounds and you always wanted to do the right thing. but you also respected other people’s opinions. without you, we wouldn’t have been able to save frisk. they were just a scared teenager when you first met them and they were being moved through the facility you were working at. you talked to them just _once_. and yet, you decided to help find them after you decided that us monsters were trustworthy. frisk is a human with magic and they are the one who reset, with your help. you gave them a boost to reset, so we could go back and stop the war. you didn’t want to reset but you did it anyway because the majority of us wanted it. you are the best person, doe. ”

“Doe?” you asked. He’d called you that before as well.

Sans’ grin widened a little. “you wouldn’t tell us your name at first but you told me eventually. that’s the only reason I was able to track you down at all, even if it took too long.”

“I sound… interesting. It sounds like I got over…” you started to say but you still couldn’t even say the words out loud.

“your family's car accident?” Sans filled in.

“I told you about that?” you asked and pulled your knees to your chest to protect yourself, even if Sans was still standing perfectly still in the middle of the living room. Had you really trusted him enough to tell him about the tragedy that almost tore you apart?

“yeah, you did. you won’t remember?”

You bit into your lower lip. “No, I don’t remember. I’m sorry, Sans.”

“i’d like to show you something. just one last thing, if you don’t mind?”

You were pretty sure that you wouldn’t have denied him anything.

“I don’t mind.”

“i’ll just have to go get it. i’ll be right back,” he said and disappeared before your eyes.

Just like before the room seemed to crackle with something, probably magic. It didn’t seem so scary now. Frankly, it should have been odd that you were talking to a monster at all and on top of that, a monster that claimed to know you during an alternate timeline. It was most bizarre.

The crackle was back in the air a moment before Sans reappeared, now holding a blue flower in a dome in his hands. You crooked your head to the side in confusion.

Sans smiled at your antics. “this is an echo flower. back in the other timeline, i gave you a tour of the underground and we walked through a patch of these. they record snippets of conversation and because i took it out of the underground and stored it in my office, it survived through timelines.”

“How is that possible?” you wondered and got up from the couch to closer inspect the flower in its dome, you hunched down and almost pressed your nose to the glass. The flower was beautiful. You hadn’t realized how close you had gotten until you were almost face to face with Sans when you looked up.

“time and magic are strange things. but i hope that it would survive if i took it out of its natural habitat and it did. i… listen to it when i miss you,” Sans confessed and then coughed to cover it up. “okay, i’ll lift the dome and play it for you but please stay quiet until the dome is secured back on. understood?”

“Sure,” you said and wondered if you should step back but you didn’t feel frightened at all, even standing so close to a powerful monster.

“Sans is much softer and kinder than people think,” said the flower as Sans gently touched its petals. It definitely sounded like you, even if your voice sounded a bit more mature than your current eighteen-year-old self.

But it wasn’t the fact that the voice sounded like you or even your words that said without a doubt that Sans was soft and kind, it was the pitch behind your words that struck a cord within you.

“you’re ridiculous, doe,” the flower continued in Sans’ voice and he sounded exactly the same as he did now. Maybe, just less melancholy.

You hadn’t been expecting the next part and you jumped a little at it. You were laughing. You were laughing so uninhibited and you sounded so happy. You couldn’t recall laughing like that since before the accident. You had thought that you might never be able to laugh like that again. At best, your colleagues at the restaurant got a little chuckle out of you but this was different.

It hit you like a train and it made something ache in your chest because you weren’t that person on that recording. You would probably never become that person because things had been different. Your first meeting had been under different circumstances and there must have been so many things gradually bringing the two of you together. You couldn’t hope to imitate that.

Sans restored the dome over the flower and looked at you with apprehension.

“I loved you,” you whispered and the words tasted odd on your tongue.

You could hear it in your tone and in your laugh. You loved him. You didn’t know if it was romantic or platonic but you had definitely loved him. You weren’t sure if you’d ever be able to love someone again but you had loved him, in that alternate timeline.

“you? what?” Sans asked and he looked panicked.

You reached out to place a hand on his arm and the touch seemed to dampen the panic in his eye sockets. But then you recognized the reason behind his panic: he hadn’t known. You must not have told him. It made sense, you supposed, because if everything had been to be rewinded, why would you want to tell him?

“I never told you?” you asked, even if you thought that you knew the answer.

“no… we were close. very close but you never…” Sans seemed like he couldn’t find the words. “you sure? i… i should have told you that... i didn’t tell you either.”

“I think I knew,” you said.

“you do?”

“I can hear it in your voice too, Sans. You sound just as smitten as I do. Two fools in love, right? But… I’m not that person. I’m not your Doe. I mean, technically, I suppose I am but at the same time I’m not. You say that there was a war on and that we meet three years from now. Whatever we must have gone through for me to trust you like that, to feel like that about you, I can’t imagine that it’s been nothing.”

“we went through a lot of things together,” Sans confirmed. “it took you a while to open up.”

“I could imagine,” you said with a said smile. “And Sans, I’m sorry but I’m not the person you loved. She doesn’t exist. I could have been her but I’m not. When you created an alternate timeline, you erased the me that knew you and I don’t know you anymore.”

“you warned me about that, you know. you said that you’d be an entirely different person if things reset and we met again. i guess i hoped that you’d somehow remember. sometimes fragments are transferred across timelines,” Sans said.

“You do seem familiar, Sans,” you said because you couldn’t bear him looking so sad. “Your left eye lights up when you use magic, right?”

“you remember?” he asked and the hope in his voice was almost more crushing than the sadness.

“No, not really. There’s just foggy recollection about trivial things. I don’t remember any of our conversations or what caused me to laugh like that on the Echo Flower. I’m sorry,” you said and you felt so terrible because you could see the heartbreak on his face.

He had lost you and maybe he hadn’t even known how much he had to lose.

“don’t be. you never wanted to reset but you respected the majority.”

“Did it fix things? Going back?” you asked, hopeful.

“maybe. but things are still not looking too bright for future harmony between our species.”

Humans and monsters weren’t at war right now but at the same time, tensions were really high and you were increasingly worried that it might happen some day in the near future. Too many humans were mistrustful of the monsters and no one really knew if they were supposed to be afraid of them or not.

“You can’t just crop off the weeds on the surface, Sans. You have to get to the root of the problem or the weeds will just keep popping up. You have to change people’s mind. We’re scared of what we don’t understand, so you have to teach us. You have to show us who you monsters really are.”

Sans’ grin widened, even as his brow bones were drawn together in a frown.

“i miss your wisdom,” Sans said. “i miss you. any you, even if you’re not mine. how is your life?”

“It’s good. I’m taking some time to work before I decide if I want to go to university. I work at this nice restaurant and I have some great colleagues, I’m actually dating one of them and it’s going well. I’m learning to let people back into my life.”

“i’m happy for you,” Sans said and you had a feeling that he really wanted to be happy for you but at the same time he sounded so defeated.

You could understand that. He had spent a year looking for you, only to find that you didn’t have any memory of him at all and that your life was moving in a different direction. On top of that, you accidentally told him that the other you had probably been in love with him and never told him. He deserved better but you couldn’t do anything to change the past.

“Sans, maybe we could try to be friends? You’d have to be careful, of course, because monsters aren’t allowed in this city. Monsters and humans being even friends are frowned upon as well but I guess we could figure something out? I know I don’t know you but there’s still this sense of familiarity about you,” you said and reached up to touch your chest. Sans noticed your hand movement.

“i think that’s my soul trying to call out to yours. how does it feel?”

You took a moment to consider your soul. Some monsters and humans had been working together after monsters were granted the restricted citizenship and humans had been able to build a machine that could analyze soul types. You had taken the test and gotten an inconclusive result but it had either been blue or green. There was so much that you didn’t know about souls yet but you knew that they were something very special.

“It feels like an echo. Like when I heard my voice on the Echo Flower. It’s as if I’m able to pick up on something that was there before but it’s… different now. I can still hear and feel something but it’s mudded. Like we’re hitting each other at different frequencies?”

“that’s probably the timelines interfering. everything we reset still happened, even if time went back. there’s vibrations through the system but it’ll never be the same.”

“I’m sorry, Sans,” you said for probably the thousandth time.

“it’s okay. we made our choice and now we have to live with it. i… i need a moment to reflect but i’ll come back? i know you’ll probably never feel about me like before but i’d like to have you in my life, in any way i can.”

“Of course, Sans,” you said without hesitation. You were definitely still feeling the familiar pull towards him.

“tomorrow evening?”

“Oh! I have a date, so…”

Sans’ expression faltered for a little moment but he composed himself very quickly but it still hurt to see it.

“the day after then? just… i just found you and i can’t say goodbye just yet.”

“The day after tomorrow,” you agreed. “Just, err, shortcut in here? It’s best the police don’t see you. We wouldn’t want them to… attempt to catch you because I seriously doubt that they could if they wanted to.”

“your faith in my abilities are nice but someone got me in the other timeline,” Sans confessed. “i was captured and i would have been killed but you saved me.”

There was so much history that you had no idea about. You sympathized so deeply with Sans who had been left with all of the memories. He was definitely right before. It was more of a curse than a blessing to remember stuff like that.

“Then be careful, so I don’t have to save you again. I think I’d try. You strike me as someone who looks out for others while forgetting about himself. So I suppose, I might have to do that. I did before?”

“yeah, you looked out for me and saved me in more ways that one. i’ll see you soon. thanks for hearing me out,” Sans said and did a salute before disappearing.

When he left there was still a phantom ache in your chest but pressing your palm over your heart worked to dull it a little bit. This was all very surreal.

You had been in love with a skeleton. You had saved people. You had sided with the monsters.

Well, the other you had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here is the first of the two alternate endings. What did you think of it? Did it make your heart break a little like it did for me when I was writing it? I also hope that this provided something for the people who wanted the reset in the original story. In my mind, a reset would always have torn them apart and left our dear reader without a memory. This one is bitter sweet and they might get to become friends again but the next one is a dark one. Obviously, if you know the game you'll know that the third ending isn't a pretty one.
> 
> I'm hoping to have it ready for Sunday at the usual time! And then this story will officially be finished, however, if you want Sans' perspective on any of the chapters from the original storyline, follow the series that I added this one to.


	37. Alternate Ending: Genocide

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With things reset, she had been recruited by POCAM just out of high school. She had quickly risen within their ranks and she was the brain behind bringing down many of the prominent monsters. Now, eight years after the monsters had invaded the human planet, just one monster remained to be killed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Brace yourself. Look at the title. You know what is coming. Welcome to the cold-hearted ending.
> 
> [Read bonus Sans' point of view from the main story](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14174301)

You weren’t cleared for duty yet. The scar on your arm didn’t look like much now but it had almost killed you. Everyone knew that Undyne’s spears were deadly. You had dozens of lost comrades to prove that.

But you also had Undyne’s dust to prove that she wasn’t invincible. She might have been able to scar you but you had won the battle when she turned to dust. She deserved it. She had laid waste to almost all of your fellow POCAM soldiers on the mission. She was a vicious beast that had to be stopped.

You had told yourself that over and over because you had heard her cry of agony and the muttered apology to her alleged once-lover Alphys because she couldn’t avenge her.

It had been a week since you had taken on Undyne and you were feeling caged, just stuck in the POCAM headquarters, even if everyone treated you like a queen.

You were only 24 years old and yet you had been part of taking most of the prominent monsters down. It had been eight years since the monsters emerged from the Underground. It was your goal to make sure that no monsters would be alive when it reached the ten-year anniversary.

You were so close.

Other than a few monsters potentially hiding out with treacherous humans, every prominent monster had been slain but one. The notorious Sans still lived. His teleportation magic made him especially hard to catch. He had a tendency of disappearing when POCAM showed up.

He couldn’t keep running.

You had a doctor’s appointment to check your physical health before you were allowed back in the field. They had to clear you.

“How does it look, Doctor Madelyn?” you asked after she had completed a variety of tests.

“You’re in good health but that scar on your arms is something different. It isn’t healing right. I think we should wait another week before you are back on active duty.”

“That’s bullshit,” you snapped. “It’s a scratch. I don’t care that it’s not properly healing. We’re wasting time. We’re _this_ close to having exterminated their entire species.”

“You’re not cleared for duty, Agent D, and you cannot bully me into clearing you. I’m not of those trainees that fall over themselves to kiss your boots.”

You let out a sigh and composed yourself. You hated that side effect of your supposed “fame”. It was exhausting, even if it was nice that you also had more leeway with your superiors.

You had shown just how big an asset you were time and time again. You’d been recruited straight out of high school and within three years you had been a full-fledged agent while reading up on monster history and science.

When POCAM captured the robot monster Mettaton, the scientists were convinced that they had reprogrammed him entirely. You hadn’t been so sure. You had kept studying up on him, a harmless side-project in your superior’s eyes, but it had paid off. After a year, you discovered a failsafe audio overwrite by the robot’s creator Alphys. With that removed, he was the perfect obedient weapon, which he showed when he was sent to infiltrate the monster labs. When Alphys tried to overwrite him, he killed her.

When POCAM had gotten ahold of a monster sympathizer with ties to the skeleton brothers, you used the knowledge that the other agents made her give up, to form a plan. You had hoped to trap both of the skeleton brothers but only Papyrus had showed up when he had received a letter signed in the name of his supposed friend. He was killed almost instantly and didn’t even put up much of a fight. You had been on remote detail but it original idea had been yours.

When the monster king and queen had gone on a rampage, you had been in the front lines fighting against the two boss monsters. It had been a hard battle and many of your own had been lost but ultimately your numbers had won out over their magic. They had seemed sporadic and irrational in their attacks and it was all too easy to upset them with a few choice words, especially when those words concerned the former monster ambassador Frisk, who had been killed during a peaceful protest just days before.

You were known for being calculating. A good solider. A brilliant fighter. A ruthless hunter.

“You shouldn’t keep me benched,” you told the doctor but you made sure to take away the hard edge that your voice had taken over the past few years. You knew Doctor Madelyn and she had helped you heal many times. She didn’t deserve to be at the blunt end of your frustrations but you were going crazy just sitting still.

“Hey,” she said in that soft voice. “You’ll be out in the field again soon enough. I’m sure Director Jameson wouldn’t want to risk one of his best agents.”

“Yeah,” you said, teeth clenched together.

You and Director Jameson didn’t quite see eye to eye. You could understand having to kill monsters. They were very dangerous and they had refused to submit to the human government’s demand seven years ago. They had even gone as far as claiming that humans had tried to plant a bomb at the negotiation table for monster rights. That was absurd.

Negotiations had turned pretty sour after that. The monsters had come into your world and demanded to live beside you. It didn’t work like that. This was your world. You were the superior species and they couldn’t just emerged from some dark hole and lay out demands.

However, Director Jameson frowned upon magic as a concept. A couple of years back, it had been announced that any human with magical abilities were to be held in confinement because they were a danger to themselves. You had studied up on the subject extensively and humans would rarely have magic but if they did, it was something they were born with. It seemed wrong to you to be locked up because you had been born with an affinity for magic. Frisk had been holding a protest against the motion and it was there that they had been killed and supposedly that was the event that triggered the monster king and queen to attack humans.

You weren’t proud of how you had relayed to your fellow POCAM soldiers that using Frisk’s death to disorient them but it had stopped them in their tracks and saved countless of human lives.

“Go get some more rest,” the doctor ordered and you smiled and nodded. You left her office but once outside, you didn’t head towards the barracks. Instead, you headed towards the side-exit and out into the cold air.

You didn’t care if you weren’t officially cleared for duty. You needed fresh air and going along one of the outer patrol routes would be just what you needed.

It was almost over. Almost all monsters had been killed. When they were all dead, the war would be over and things could go back to normal. You looked down at your hands as you walked and you felt the throb in your arm. You recalled the feeling of dust tainting your hands and how they would never quite be as soft as before you were requited.

You weren’t sure what you would do when you finally completed your goal but you knew that you had to keep going and stay determined. The end was in sight. Just one more fight and it would be done. You could go back to being a normal person, right?

The further you moved away from headquarters, the calmer you felt. You disliked how Director Jameson was already shifting his focus to catching humans with magic abilities. You disliked how people would look upon you with admiration because you had been able to kill so many of the enemies, from small insignificant Froggits to someone like Undyne. You disliked how good you were at this.

It scared you.

You were keeping an observant eye on your surroundings and just as you were moving through a more abandoned part of the city, down an alleyway, you felt a buzz on your hip as your magic detector was activated.

With hardly any monsters left walking the earth, you had an idea of who might be near, especially since you hadn’t seen anyone. You wondered why he had singled you out but you supposed he must know that you were the one delivering the final blow to Undyne.

You tried to stay alert to get the drop on him but his stealth and strength did not disappoint up close. You were seized, your body left immobile as you were slammed into the wall and held there from the moment that Sans appeared in front of you with an outstretched hand.

You were wearing your magic nullifying device but the monsters seemed to always find a way to beat whatever technology you had come up with. It was unnerving to be held in by the notorious and powerful monsters and you registered that you were likely about to meet you demise.

But you would go out swinging if you had to.

“Nice to finally meet you in person,” you said, venom in your tone. “Sans, is it?”

Sans’ left eye socket held a flickering blue fire and he looked so… hopeless.

You had expected to see fury in his eyes but he just looked sad. You struggled against the invisible restraints and you scolded yourself for not letting anyone know where you were. And because you weren’t officially cleared for duty, you didn’t have your comms on you.

“you know very well that it is, dirty brother killer,” Sans replied in a low and predatory voice.

It looked like holding you in place was no effort at all and that scared you more than his intimidating voice, which yes, it was pretty scary as well. You had never seen him up close before. He had been in some of the same battles as you but whenever you’d even tried to get close, he would just teleport right out of there.

“Want revenge? Is that why you’re here? For Papyrus or Undyne?” you said and struggled against the restraints again. It was hopeless. They weren’t budging at all.

“for all of them,” Sans replied.

“What are you waiting for then? Want to torture me first? Pull my limbs apart? I heard you did that to some of the humans.”

“they killed pap. i tore apart everyone on that team, limb for limb. anyone who hurts my family is in for a bad time.”

Oh, you knew that you were in for a bad time. Sans did not bluff. He was not a boss monster but he was something different entirely. He could do things that other monsters couldn’t do. POCAM had incredibly little in his file. He was a ghost and he never let any human come close, with the exception of that kid Frisk.

“So go ahead then. I’m sure you know my part in that,” you stated. You hated being stuck and vulnerable while Sans just stood there and stared at you like he was seeing someone that he knew.

“i know your part all too well,” Sans confirmed and there was definitely sadness in his voice now.

“Are you going to make a move or talk until you bore me to death?” you taunted.

A shift death would be preferable to being torn apart.

Sans let out a dry chuckle. “i haven’t talked to you for seven years. you’ll have to indulge me, doe.”

You frowned at the seeming nickname. Was he referring to your status as the fourth most valued agent in POCAM, Agent D?

“you joined the enemy so early. it took too long to find you. by the time i did, you were already in their clutches. just eighteen and your head was being filled with all of their assumptions. you never had a chance to make up your own mind.”

“Oh, I did! I make my own choices and I’m the one who had to live with them. I’ve served with POCAM proudly to make sure that none of you can ever hurt us.”

“us hurt you? have you looked at the numbers? you kill us without provocation. we only defend ourselves or act out of grief. you’re not on the good side, kid.”

“I’m not a kid,” you said. “I might be young but trust me, you don’t want to test me.”

“you’re looking pretty helpless to me right now,” Sans noted and walked up to you.

You wanted to attempt to head-butt him but you had a feeling that it would crack your skull rather than his and besides your head couldn’t move that much because of his restraints. He was like a cat playing with the mouse that it caught. Monsters were disgusting. At least you tried to put them down humanely, well most of you did.

Sans reached out and you wanted to scream but you didn’t dare to make a sound, so you only watched as Sans gently touched the chest plate that you were wearing. It had been designed a couple of years back to ensure that monsters couldn’t call out human souls in battles and hurt you directly. It was a brilliant invention and supposedly magic tamper-proof.

Though, as you felt the chest plate rip away from your body, you knew that wasn’t true. Sans wasn’t playing around. He was going to take out your soul and make you his slave. Forbiddingly, you felt your eyes start to water.

This was what you were fighting against. Monsters who could just call out humans souls and then control them. You were fighting against becoming a whole world of mindless zombie slaves that would do anything the monsters wanted.

Sans proved even crueler than you thought. He was going to make you live out your worst nightmare.

“You’re a coward. Turning one of the best agents against the POCAM? That’s your plan?”

“no,” Sans said and his voice was surprisingly gentle. It threw you off completely. “i just needed to see it to confirm it.”

You felt the feeling of your soul detach from your body and it being pulled out. You tried to hold onto it, which made every muscle in your body ache, but it moved out smoothly despite your protests.

POCAM had developed scanners to figure out soul colors. You had something that they called a cracked duality soul, which meant that you essentially had three colors in one. Red was the most important one because that was the color of the most devoted soldiers who kept going until the job was done. Supposedly, the colors went along with traits but without any of the monsters cooperating you didn’t know more than that.

However, the scanners didn’t make your soul come out of your body, like what Sans was doing right now. You saw the heart-shaped thing float from your chest and hover over Sans’ palm. You’d be his puppet. You’d do anything he said the moment he physically touched your soul.

But for now, it just hung over his palm as he looked at it with a sad frown.

You couldn’t help but watch along with him. Your green and blue colors seemed even darker than when you’d seen your soul years ago when a monster pulled it out during battle before the protective chest plates were invented.

And then there were the cracks. They were supposed to be red but they looked almost black.

“your soul should be shimmering,” Sans said in a quiet whisper. “the blue and green should glow and interchange and those lines shouldn’t be that thick or dark. they should be almost invisible.”

“What do you care? You just want me to be your slave, like every other monster.”

“none of us want that. yes, it’s true that we could control you if we touch your souls but we’ve never wanted that. none of us has ever wanted to do that to any of you. we’re not like that.”

“Don’t you see the irony in trying to convince me of that while you’re about to do it yourself?” you spat out.

“i’m not here to fight you.”

“No, I’m sure you ambush your enemies for funsies all of the time, Sans,” you said sarcastically.

“we were never really enemies. you just think we are.”

“I beg to differ on the account that we’re at war with each other. I’ve killed yours and you’ve killed mine. We’re the fucking definition of enemies. And you’re about to use me as a tool to get into the POCAM base, and you caught me on an off day, so good for you.”

Sans looked confused and looked you over with an analytical glance. You thought he would do something to your soul, which was still floating over his palm, but against all odds, he moved to put it back in your chest.

When it latched itself back in its home, you felt a tingling sensation all throughout your body. It was like warmth was expanding from the middle of your chest. It was a foreign and unsettling feeling.

He reached out again and you prepared to have your arm yanked off but instead he just ripped the fabric of your uniform away from your wounded arm, along with the bandage. The wound from Undyne’s spears had required stitches but it still looked violent and bloody, even after a week.

“time has a funny way of repeating itself,” Sans muttered, seemingly to himself. “same weapon, same arm, different timeline.”

You were just about to ask him what the hell he was babbling about when his palm glowed green and he placed it on your wound. You expected it to hurt but instead a sense of calm went through you.

Green magic was healing magic. Sans was closing up the wound for you, while holding you in place with his blue magic. You had severely underestimated his strengths. But why did he even bother healing you?

He pulled away his palm and you wondered why the texture of bone against your skin seemed to make the warm feeling in your chest intensify.

“What do you want from me, Sans? Why stitch me up before you tear me apart?” you demanded to know and struggled against his magic again. It didn’t seem like it had weakened at all.

“i’m not going to tear you apart. i could never do that to you. i’ve avoided getting close to you for that very reason. even as you became a killer, i couldn’t bear to be in a situation were we’d truly be on opposing sides. my carelessness got my brother killed.”

“I’m not that special. I’m just another agent,” you reasoned.

“no, you’re not. to me, you’re much more than that. you’re my vulnerability. i couldn’t bear having to fight someone that i once loved.”

Sans wasn’t making any sense at all. Firstly, monsters weren’t capable of human feelings like love. At best, they had animal instincts to look after their pack. Secondly, why the hell was he speaking as if he loved you? You didn’t know each other and you were enemies!

But maybe you could use that to your advantage.

“If that’s truth, then let me go.”

Instantly, the hold on you ceased. You were shocked for only a second before you decided to use Sans’ temporary lapse of insanity to get the upper hand. He didn’t even fight you as you pulled out your dagger and pressed him up against the other side of the ally, knife near his spine.

It should be a clean kill.

Just dig in but something was stopping you. Maybe it was the fact that he wasn’t fighting back at all, which was concerning, or maybe it was because you got an overwhelming sense that this had happened before.

You had dreamt of getting the drop of the notorious Sans and that must be it, right?

“you remember this, don’t you?” he asked and you met his eyes.

His eye sockets were larger than you thought that they would be up this close and his white pinpricks were much more expressive. Something in your chest reacted to his words.

“Shut up,” you said but you still didn’t make a move to strike. You felt frozen.

“we’ve been like this before. you warned me that you might dust me if you pressed a knife to my spine in an alternate timeline. you were right,” Sans said and he was awfully cocky for someone about to be dusted.

“Stop that babble about other timelines. We know about time manipulation but it doesn’t matter. This timeline matters. Besides, Frisk is dead,” you said.

It still haunted you. Frisk had just been a teenager who could do a little magic. They had climbed Mount Ebott and fallen into a hole and adapted to make it out alive. They shouldn’t have to have been killed. It was wrong to turn on your own.

“your organization saw to that,” Sans said and you couldn’t blame the hatred in his voice.

He sounded so human.

“They were at a protest. Things got heated. It shouldn’t have gone down like that. But they were resisting registering their abilities. And if they could truly mess with time…”

“they couldn’t do it anyway. they needed _your_ boost. when the war broke out again, we tried to go back again but they couldn’t do it without you. ”

“What?” you asked.

Why in the world would they be looking for you? You weren’t magic. That had been sufficiently tested.

“i tried to look for you but you weren’t anywhere to be found. clearly, you were training to kill us already. you had a lot of knowledge in the other timeline. you were our friend and ally. mettaton’s verbal overwrite? no one could have found that but you. you kept looking until you found it, didn’t you?”

No one knew other than the senior staff of POCAM knew that you had been the brain behind catching that bit of programming. How could Sans possibly know that you were responsible for that?

“I… so what if I did?” you said.

“it got alphys killed. trusting and kind alphys who thought she could save her old friend from your evil clutches,” Sans said. “just like papyrus thought he was meeting up with a human friend but it was all an orchestrated trap. that was pure evil.”

“You’re the evil ones, Sans. You’re monsters! You want to take over our world. If we don’t establish dominance, you would have enslaved us all. With what you know about our souls, we would have been defenseless against you. Don’t try to play the hero here.”

Sans let out a sigh and close his eye sockets for a moment.

“you’re so wrong that it’s almost painful to listen to you. the other you saw reason but they brainwashed this you past repair. you let pap get killed. my brother. my innocent brother who adored the version he knew of you. i knew we’d lost you but i still couldn’t make myself fight you. i didn’t want to kill someone i once loved,” Sans said and repeated what he had said earlier.

“We could never have been in love,” you argued.

Monsters and humans didn’t fall in love. And you certainly wouldn’t be able to fall in love with one of those white-souled manipulative creatures.

“perhaps you weren’t but my soul felt it,” Sans said.

He was screwing with your head and you weren’t sure why you were hesitating. You reasoned that he might have done something to your soul while he had it called out because it felt too hot in your chest.

“I should just press this in and you’d be dust instantly,” you threatened. You felt off-balance.

“you remember that too, huh?”

“What?”

“your pocam records won’t say it anywhere. i’ve always been careful about that. but you know just how easily i could be dusted, don’t you? i only have one hp. i’ve told you that before. it doesn’t matter. i’m here for you to kill me. there’s nothing left. everyone is dead.”

That… couldn’t be true.

1 lousy HP?

It was impossible. The more powerful the monster, the higher the HP. That was the rule. That was why boss monsters were so difficult to kill. Now that you’d seen him in action, you would bet that Sans could even rival them in power, so how could his words be true? And if they were, it meant he had never really taken a hit during the whole war. He must have made himself untouchable, which was why it didn’t make sense that he would ambush you and then allow himself to be held down.

He couldn’t mean it when he said that he was here for you to kill him. Monsters fought to the very end. It was in their nature. They didn’t commute surrender. They weren’t capable of human notions like that.

“Why are you really here, Sans? Why single me out?”

“i told you. in another timeline, one where there’s a war too but you don’t get swept up into pocam, we meet. i kidnap you to find frisk but then i let you go and you come back of your own free will. you help papyrus. with your intel, we find and save frisk. you become a friend to us. i know you don’t remember but that doesn’t make it any less true. it happened.”

It sounded nothing like you. You couldn’t be friends with monsters. You couldn’t have a monster like Sans be in love with you. None of it made sense.

“You feel some twisted kind of attachment to me, pal,” you said.

“i did. now i just want it to be over. i know you. the other you and this you. i studied up on you. it seems oddly fitting that you are the one to end my existence because we wouldn’t even have been in this mess if i listened to you before. for that, i’m sorry, doe.”

The way he said that odd nickname sent a wave of familiarity over you. Could he be telling the truth? Was there a world where you didn’t kill monsters but befriended them instead?

It seemed terribly dumb to trust a bunch of monsters like that when they could call out your soul at any point and make you do anything you wanted.

“That other me that you claimed to have known,” you said and hesitated. “Did you ever… make me do anything? Like take out my soul and force me?”

“no. i couldn’t break your trust like that. you were skeptical of us monsters but you allowed me to show you that we weren’t what you’d been told. i have no hopes to do the same to this you. it’s too late and i don’t want to live in this hell timeline anymore where i have to watch the human i loved be responsible for killing all my friends and family.”

A silence settled over you. You had the distinct feeling that Sans was truly surrendering to your mercy. He could probably have fought back if he wanted to, even if the story about his 1 HP was true. Something told you that it was.

“please,” Sans said. “you owe me this much after having broken my soul and taken away everyone i ever loved. grant me peace. take my dust and show off to your pocam friends. you bested the notorious sans.”

There was a cold edge in his voice and it was deeply unsettling to you.

“I don’t do that,” you argued. “We’re trying to make the world a safer place. It’s not about the collar.”

“regardless, i am done playing. i have no more bones up my sleeves. at least do me the favor of ending my miserable existence.”

You would never have thought that a monster would ask to be killed. It felt unnatural and weird but you knew that you would have to do it. It was your mission. It was the job that you had embrace for seven years. You were in the homestretch. With Sans gone, all the important monsters had been killed. In all likelihood, he was the only monster still walking your earth.

It would be clean of monsters again. You felt conflicted but Sans was asking you to go through with it. And you did feel like you owed him something, even if you had a feeling that you’d never be able to get his dust off your hands.

“doe,” Sans said and you reacted to the nickname that you still didn’t quite understand. “this was bound to happen eventually. you would have found me in a month or in a year. let me go out on my terms. just the two of us. i’m sorry that i didn’t listen to you before. i hope you’ll forgive me.”

“Sans, there’s nothing to forgive. We’re on opposing sides in a war.”

“that doesn’t always make your enemies. but for what it’s worth, i forgive you. i forgive you for the kills on my people. i should have been there to prevent those people getting ahold of you. i should have protected you.”

You felt something wet on your cheeks and you weren’t sure why you were crying all of the sudden. Sans’ words felt like they were pulling on your heartstrings.

“it’s okay. do it.”

And you did. You saw how his white pinpricks shimmered. You felt how his bones under your hands turned into dust. You felt him being erased from existence. His dust stuck to your face and mixed with your tears and you let out a big sob and fell to your knees.

You felt like you had just done something terrible.

Despite all of your training, nothing could have prepared you for this agony. Your soul hurt and every fiber of your body felt like it was on fire. You looked down at the dust covering your hands and you knew it would never be able to come off. You looked at where Sans had ripped the sleeve of your shirt open and the perfectly healed wound.

You had been enemies. You should feel victorious. Your goal was completed.

But you just felt empty, sad and in pain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was the final alternate ending. Did I break your heart? I think I broke my own a little bit but I'm still glad that I chose to write these two alternate endings in the spirit of the game. I would love to hear what you thought of the story as a whole, now that it's officially finished. I've never written for this fandom before but thank you so much for embracing my story with open arms and especially a huge thank you to the people who left comments on all the updates - you're my freaking favourites. This story grew so much larger than I had originally intended but I am so happy to have brought you this human's story and been able to put my own spin on some of the characters from the Undertale universe. It's been a pleasure and thank you so much for reading.
> 
> Bonus stuff from Sans' point of view will probably be posted on the 29th of April. You will be able to find it in the second story in this series. Either click the series or the link in the top notes.


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